Why do we go the distance to send out Christmas greeting cards each and every year? Why do we spend so much time and money on cards, looking for just the right Christmas card design, just the right sentiment, to send out to people we talk to every day of our lives . . . or, on the other side of that fence, to people we usually are in touch with but one day of the year—Christmas?
Tradition. It’s tradition to send out Christmas cards, and as a general population, we love tradition.
If you have not even addressed—excuse the pun—the idea of your Christmas card list yet this year, you’d better get busy. There is still time to do something special, like use a family photo on your card, or select a unique Christmas card design not used by almost every other person on the planet who is sending out cards.
If you haven’t figured out what you’d like to do for your unique Christmas greeting card, to send to all those folks on your yearly card list, consider going online and, from the comfort of your own computer, pick and choose graphics, fonts, font colors, even papers. You can decide what you want to say to ensure a big, happy smile when the card is first opened, and if you’d like, you can even add your own favorite sentiment on the inside.
I love to send Christmas greeting cards, and I have lots of fun going to my mailbox to see who’s sent one to me and my family. It is the little things in life make me happy and, from the popularity of Christmas cards every year, I’m obviously not the only one who can be easily pleased by the simple act of receiving a friendly Christmas card. If you send me a Christmas card, I’ll remember you fondly for the rest of the year. Send me a unique Christmas card with a soft and gushy sentiment inside and I’ll not only remember you, I’ll smile every time I think of you.
Christmas is a time of great emotion and deeply individual motivations. We usually buy our Christmas greeting cards based on what our heart tells us, not necessarily on what our intellect is saying. That makes this holiday deeply personal, on almost all levels. No matter what else we do with it, how we celebrate it, in what way we share it with others, how we partake of it is, usually for the most part, spurred on by individual deeply-imbedded motivations.
For a hopefully few sad people, Christmas cards are hastily selected and addressed and sent out even faster. These people consider Christmas cards nothing more than an obligation. They don’t send them because it’s an enjoyable, uplifting activity, but simply because it’s expected of them. No other reason. These folks will never take a few extra moments to find unique Christmas cards and that is a bit sad. If you’re taking your time to pull your address list, buy cards, sign your name, and address the envelope, I hope you’re doing it because you really like the people you’re sending to, not simply fulfilling a duty to the Christmas Card Elves who might drop coal in your stocking if you don’t do the right thing this year.
So, what sort of card do we send this time? We could just toddle on off to the local store and buy a few boxes of pre-made, very generic holiday cards, with a graphic stamped onto inexpensive card stock . . . all costing us the least amount possible. And with the economy as it is, that is a legitimate way to continue the tradition of remembering other people during the holiday season.
Still, there’s an imbedded sense of connection most of us want to keep going from year to year. If at all possible, we will pay extra to add that unique Christmas card quality to our communications. Personalized Christmas cards, in whatever way we personalize them, are an extension of our inner selves. They share with others what we think and feel and hope during a time of year where it is an almost inherently-human imperative to be a part of the lives of others. A simple but unique Christmas card can make someone else smile for the rest of the day. It can do that for us, too, as the sender, and that give-and-take makes us happy enough to want to continue the tradition year after year.
What are a few of the deeply individualized reasons we send out unique Christmas cards?
1. We understand the importance of a lasting impression . . . it feels good to us and we want to impart that feeling to others who mean a lot to us. 2. We have a sense of personal pride . . . we feel better about ourselves when we take the time to be a part of someone else’s joy. 3. We own a strong self identity . . . unique personalized Christmas cards will set us apart from all the others sending cards at this time of year – only our card will boldly proclaim that it can be from no one else. 4. We have a respect for universal values . . . courtesy, civility, and tradition are all basic parts of most human core philosophies. 5. We are fun people . . . personalization is a great alternative to everyday, ordinary Christmas cards – after all, if we spend the time and money to take part in the tradition, we should at least set ourselves apart from everyone else. 6. We want to be remembered . . . to insure that our friends and family think of us regularly for a long time to come, and continue to look forward to receiving our unique Christmas cards each and every year. 7. We believe in creating memories . . . there’s a sense of the immortal in memories of time past and that, shared between family and friends, builds history between us, a history that will last into coming generations.The practice of sending Christmas cards is one that’s been going on for centuries, and one which will happen for as long as there is a population to enjoy receiving them. Most every one of us feels happiness when we open our mail to find a genuinely unique Christmas card sent to us from someone important in our life. That good feeling helps to make the world connect and continue to turn . . . since every day our world is getting smaller and smaller, and people from all walks of life are becoming closer and closer. We are looking for new and different ways to unite and bond, and taking the time to send a unique Christmas card simply brings us nearer to the humanity of which we all are a part.
And that has to be the true meaning of sending Christmas cards. I send one to you because I want you to know I’m thinking of you at a very special time of year, not because I’m trying to see if you’re thinking of me. It’s nice if you are, but not a requirement.
All for the spirit of the giving, not the receiving.