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With Thanksgiving fast approaching and Christmas and New Year’s not far off on the horizon, my daily existence vibes are quickly shifting into holiday mode. I’ve been starting to think about how I can let the sparkly people in my life know how much I appreciate them, and although I shouldn’t need the holiday season around to remind me to do this, it’s a nice polite nudge to get my big girl gratitude pants on and share some love.

After being away from home for five Christmases (I haven’t seen an Idaho December 25th since 2013!), this year I’ve decided to take some time away from the whale and marine tourism world and let myself just be home. I figure that one of the nicest gifts I can give to the people I love (and that I think love me) is simply be home to spend time with them. It’s that simple. I’m not planning on arriving at the airport laden with goodies from New Zealand and Tonga, the countries I’ve been inhabiting over the last twelve months. I’m just going to prance up as me, myself, and I. And I’m sure Ma and Pa will be just fine with that.

If all goes according to travel plan, It’ll just be me at the airport, with some backpacking gear. And lots of hugs and smiles and festive dance moves, of course, but none of the fluff. The level of consumerism I experience when I’m in the US (especially around the holidays) is enough to make me a bit queasy, and I know I’ve been a direct player in that system for many years myself. It’s all just so damn convenient…whatever you want from Amazon, at your door in hours! But it’s maybe time to kick that convenient consumerism to the curb and find true gratitude for the time and space to simply be with your loved ones, if you’re lucky enough to be able to do so. In NZ, Amazon isn’t much of a thing. And I flippin’ loved that (sorry to be hating on Amazon, I don’t mean to point fingers. It’s just an example. I’m not immune to Amazon, either, I’ll admit). We just went to the beach for Christmas shenanigans. We hung with friends. We cooked food. It was simple and beautiful. We were working in tourism, for goodness sake. We didn’t have the dollah bills for extravagant gifts. We just enjoyed each other’s company.

And sure, this year I’m still planning on being festive AF and eating ifo ifo (Tongan for delicious!) holiday food, rolling around outside in the snow and build snowdogs, and decorating the family tree with cute little seashells and other beach treasures. I’m not turning into Scrooge! I just don’t want things to be a big part of the day. And I don’t want to have to gift things to someone to show them that I love them. This planet doesn’t need more manmade clutter filling up our closets and later, the landfills, where the majority of most holiday gifts probably end up. 

I still feel that there is a right time and place for gifting truly needed, heartfelt gifts. Solar-powered Luci lights for your sister’s big backpacking adventure, for example, or reef-safe sunscreen for your cousin that’s headed to the tropics in January. This is just about more mindful gift-giving, and not feeling like you have to give something.

I also feel that we, the people, all need to agree, and be on the same page, about this new holiday mentality. It’s okay to just want to spend time together and not be the Santa showing up at your family holiday party with a big sack of gifts. It’s time to start some new traditions. You’re probably going to shed a huge layer of stress as well once you take off the pressure of finding “the perfect gift” for all the fam and friends in your life

I wanted to share some ideas for how to spread this vibe and message to your loved ones, because it’s probably going to be the case that not everyone is on the same page. Some people still like things! We can show them the bright side with a little bit of heart and some crazy ass dance moves.

Five Simple Ways to Create a Greener, More Love-Centric Holiday

1. Get everyone on the same page.

Send a simple e-mail or message on social media to your friends and fam before the gift-giving season begins to forewarn them that you won’t be participating in a traditional gift exchange this year. I saw a great example of this on Instagram the other day from Seed & Sprout Co.

2. Still into gifting? Make it green.

If you decide to gift something, find products that are as zero-waste or eco-friendly as possible. Make sure your recipient has a genuine need for it and that it will be put to use - otherwise, what’s the point? It might just sit in a closet gathering dust.

3. Pull out the apron.

FOOD! We all need to eat, right? I love baking and cooking homemade meals as a way to show love to my peeps. It’s something that’s going to happen anyway, and it’s time well-spent. I’m digging homemade soft pretzels lately, because you can shape the dough into any creation you want. It was my most recent Secret Santa gift!

4. Receive mindfully.

The hard bit - being on the receiving end of a gift you really don’t want because…it’s MORE STUFF. Of course, you appreciate the thought, but it’s clutter. You could go all stealth mode and see if you can return it if it came with a gift receipt, or of course try and donate it to a shelter or someone in your life that you think has an actual need for it. I think it would be a little ridiculous to outright refuse it, but there are other ways of making sure the item receives some use during it’s lifespan.

5. Make new traditions!

Shift the attention and focus away from the gift-giving (especially if you have some little humans in your family) and make some new traditions! Play more games. Fishbowl is one of my favorites for friend gatherings. Go outside and ski. Sled. Build snowmen. Make hot cocoa. Bake vegan pies. Whatever you want to do to enjoy each other and this special time of year - sans things!

Don’t be afraid to change things up!

There are a million other ways you can greenify your Christmas. I promise you, the whales and dolphins of the world are quite happy for you to enjoy just being a mammal, loving other mammals. If that seems a bit random, I’m just trying to tie this all back in with how a greener holiday life keeps the oceans happier. We don’t need more stuff! Buck consumerism! Back to basics, ya’ll. 

Do you have any other ideas for keeping the holidays simple and less stressful? Share them down below, and post your green holiday wins on Insta with #givinglovethischristmas. I wanna hear about it!

I am still currently cruising around on Zephyr in New Zealand, but I’ll be headed home next month for some fam jam Idaho time. Stay tuned for exciting changes on The Greenest Blue and some more holiday love y’all!

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