As my children have grown older, the tenor of Christmas has changed. The girls fly in from all over the country, and one by one, increasing numbers of us wait for the others at baggage claim. Suitcases bump up the stairs. Laundry baskets that have stood near-empty for months are suddenly mile-high. We talk politics, read, cook favorite dinners, take long walks, and play music way too loud. The girls work on their theses and write their resumes. We look at old photos of ourselves. Our time together is a tug between everything we were before and everything we are becoming.
And the gift thing—that’s what has probably changed the most. We keep it simple and limit it to one gift each. In talking to our editors, I found that most of us have moved into the one-perfect-gift practice, which inspired us to volunteer as your personal shoppers this season. After a week of driving around Dallas, the editors and designers emptied shopping bags full of samples, along with digital camera printouts galore, on a table in my office. Together, we examined their findings: fine, singular objects ranging from gingko tea stirrers from Stanley Korshak to a mind-blowing apple pie from Tootie Pie Co. in Boerne, Texas. (It was warm—we devoured it on the spot.) After looking through our gift guide (page 75), you’re bound to find brilliant ideas you can use this season.
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| CHRISTINE’S PICK: Solio mobile phone and iPod solar charger |
As it happens, my gift choice wasn’t pretty enough to be in the gift guide, so I offer it here. We still have 150,000 troops in Iraq, and electricity is scarce—if you can get it at all. For our men and women who love their iPods, what to do? Current Energy on Knox Street (www.currentenergy.com) offers a special program with the Solio, which is a solar-generated power unit that can easily charge soldiers’ iPods. Bonus: buy one for a soldier in Iraq, and the store will match your donation, so that two soldiers receive Christmas gifts. The cost is $150, and Current Energy handles the shipping.
It’s odd that a toy-like solar charger could mean so much to people you’ve never met, 7,000 miles away. But remember, our soldiers are serving millions of citizens they’ve never met, which is why, as much as I can’t wait to see my daughters, I also want to remember our servicemen and women this holiday season. Maybe you will, too.
From all of our staff, best wishes for a blessed Christmas and peace in the New Year.
Christine Allison
[email protected]
