The Gift of Love

STORY BY VICTORIA BELL. PHOTO: MADAMENOIRE

DEC. 18, 2013.  “Your children need your presence more than your presents.” Jesse Jackson

The holidays are here and parents are crunching numbers to be able to buy the precious gifts that their children desire and have asked for all year long. Between all of the chaos that the holidays bring, most parents are struggling and trying their best to make ends meet. Christmas seems to roll around pretty fast for most families with a large number of children. This is because of taxes, bills, government shut down, and other financial issues beyond our control. The holidays can be very depressing for many because of large amounts of cash that must be dished out, but some are not always in the position to do so.

When the holidays come around, teens start screaming that they want the “new” IPhone or Android, the latest shoes, clothes, computers, headphones, and designer this and that. What they don’t realize is that their parents are struggling to keep food on the table, let alone buy two hundred to five hundred dollar items. In this day and time, children are so blinded by materialistic things and what the world has to offer, that they forget the real meaning of the season. It is so important to understand that the presence of parents is the perfect present one can receive.

Parents are trying to do their best to work long hours on jobs that are not paying them the salaries they would like, and even taking part-time jobs to ensure that a smile is seen on that special day. Many are single parents who have more than one child to provide for and make happy.

This is the best time of the year to spread the love not only to children, but to parents as well. Some of us take our parents for granted, and having a loving family is essential. Most people say that they can’t wait until the day that they can get of age to graduate and move far away from home and get away from their parents. However, many times as soon as this happens, they are yearning to be right back at home in their parent’s arms receiving love and affection.

Instead of throwing a pity party when that new phone or latest gadget isn’t under the tree, it’s critical that we take this time to say thank you and appreciate what we have. There are so many people in the world that are homeless, without a family, and less fortunate. This is the season to be thankful for what you have at this moment, because in the end, the true meaning of Christmas is giving, and what is a better gift to have than the presence of your parents love?

Victoria Bell is an 8th Grader at FPCS-Woodridge Campus