There is one thing that makes anyone feel truly rich-doing an act of kindness. Now I’m not going to get all preachy on you. Just think when someone asks you for directions how good you feel helping them out.  When someone drops a package and you help them pick it up.  When you give a few canned goods to the local food drive.

I know we all want bright and shiny new things for the holidays. Maybe what we really want is to feel part of the community that we live in, maybe we want to help out the local hospital, maybe we want to volunteer to ladle out a meal at the local shelter, or maybe we want to organize an activity at the senior center.

Add up all the time you would have spent looking for parking, pushing your way through a mall, fighting long lines, and returning unwanted gifts. Now divide that time into two sections.  Use a portion to perform any volunteering that you would find satisfying. Use the other portion for a hot bath, tea with a friend, reorganizing pictures, or whatever activity makes you feel pampered.  If you need some gifts, go early with a strict list, and leave early before it becomes a madhouse.

Laugh when you see the news stories about everyone else heading to the mall for last minute Holiday shopping.

You will also be heading there – after the Holidays when everything is on sale.