*Picture from the internet
Boxing Day Sales. These words spur thrills of excitement in some while sparking fear and dread in others. A good friend of mine, who I had not seen in a long tie, suggested we meet half way at a shopping centre for a long overdue catch up. This might not seem like such a big deal, but on the biggest shopping day of the year, I was worried about just getting a car park. To my surprise I got a park within 3 minutes of entering the car park. WINNING! I enjoyed a lovely lunch and catch up with my good friend and his wife, despite the crazy atmosphere. I arrived a little early (due to my good fortune with parking) so decided to just look around the shops myself, see if I could grab a bargain like the 50 million other people in the centre where doing. Whilst I was shuffling and squeezing my way around the hoards of people I got a good chance to watch everybody as they passed. Why is it the biggest shopping day of the year? Just because of the sales? How much gets bought just for the sake of buying something, only to rarely get used, if at all? Just because it's cheaper than normal, not because you need it or maybe even want it that much. In the end I bought some Body Shop stuff that needed replacing and nothing more. I got to thinking how much money is wasted on such days. Besides, it feels like the shops have sales permanently, I'm always seeing signs up for different stores saying 20%, 30%, 50% off etc... So today I decided not to "buy" into this "social norm". To save my money for something far more worthwhile. Don't get me wrong, it's nice to have/receive nice things. I could probably name a handful of things I hope never to lose, due to sentimental worth though, not financial. I think that has a lot to do with my upbringing too. My mum in particular has never placed much value on monetary things, but rather experiences, which is something I hope to pass onto my children. Because at the end of the day, when the sun sets of your life for the last time, what can you take with you? Not your house, or your car, or your jewellery, or your electronics. Just the memory of who you are and the footprint you left in the world. So whilst I'm not perfect, I'm glad I don't place too much emphasis on having "things" in my life. There are so many more important things in life to place emphasis on.
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