Ciao Tutti!
So ‘tis the season to celebrate the holidays, appreciate what we have & feel blessed to be surrounded by loved ones. I hope everyone had a great holiday and Santa was good to you all J But now that Christmas is over, it’s officially the season for New Years resolutions. A few years ago, my life slowly began to change when I decided to apply all the literature I was reading and documentaries I’d been watching to my real life through my resolutions. First, I gave up drinking bottled water (I hope you remember the post!), then I gave up using plastic shopping bags (another post!!), and last year I gave up shopping at the horrific shopping conglomerate many of us know as “Wal*Mart.” But this year, I had to think. I’ve found out it’s extremely important to take one step at a time when attempting to change one’s life, but what can I do this year that can better the world? I mean, I’d love to take a service trip to Haiti like my beautiful fried Meghan Daniel (if you’re interested in this, check out the “Be Like Brit” website: www.belikebrit.org), but let’s face it, I’m an impoverished senior in college who just blew her last pennies on a trip to the Bahamas for spring break (I have to have some fun for myself, right?).
So I started to look back on some of my previous readings and the personal goals I’ve set for myself. Last Christmas, I decided that every gift I bought would either be locally made or handmade and purchased directly from the artist. I was so excited about it and with just a little hustle I managed to find some awesome gifts. For my mom, I bought this gorgeous, deep chocolate colored, ceramic water pitcher and cups all handmade from a local Providence artist that I stumbled upon during a crafts fair.
For my sisters and all the other special women in my life, I bought jewelry from the Bead for Life organization (www.beadforlife.org). This non-profit organization supplies women in Uganda with recyclable paper that they craft beautiful jewelry from. So not only do you get fashionize your family members but you can support impoverished African women in a creative way.
 |
| Colorful & bold paper beads! |
This year, I definitely stumbled. I was so stressed with finals and interviews that I didn’t have the strength or energy to find fun, unique gifts that my family members would love. I managed to buy my sisters silk scarves and jewelry boxes from a local Tibetan shop, but everything else was sadly mass-produced. I felt extremely disappointed in myself since I was so good last year, so my New Years resolution practically formed itself: for every gift I purchase in 2012 it will either be to benefit a nonprofit or purchased from a local store. Love your local! I hope this post inspires all of you to reconsider the junky, mass produced, plastic crap we all buy for each other even though we don’t need it and start thinking outside of the box. Supporting local shops is insanely important and everyone loves the gifts that have meaning attached to them. LOVE IT, YOUR LOCAL IS AMAZING. And it desperately needs your help to stay that way.
I know it’s after the holidays but, if you still need some gift ideas, check out these awesome gift organizations I found, they may not be local but they have the potential to better this world:
- www.tenthousandvillages.com/ (there’s also a Ten Thousand Villages store in New Haven!)
-
