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As I began to write, I heard a gaggle of clicking tongues and gasps as the etiquette police threatened me with motherly guilt. Did I burp in public? Did I line cut in the women's bathroom? What could possibly have the powers that be upset with me? Oh yeah, my new stance of re-gifting during the holidays! After all, nice girls and boys NEVER re-gift, even if it means that expensive bottle of perfume you can't wear due to allergies turns to alcohol in a forgotten closet. What do we do with that forgotten bottle of chemicals when we find it ten years later? We toss it out, condemning it to life in an over-crowded landfill. It would be better if someone used the perfume so there was nothing but an empty glass bottle to discard. I am the first to agree that you should never re-gift a tacky souvenir gift from a local theme park, but there are many items that can, and should be re-gifted if you are not going to use them. Doing so can not only save precious energy during the holidays, it can be beneficial to the planet as well. Recycling our unused items can save our overflowing landfills from more debris. Dvd's and CD's that you have no interest in can bring joy to someone else. Books you have no desire to read can be re-gifted or donated to local hospitals, nursing homes, prisons, women's shelters, homeless shelters and halfway homes. Many foster care families are eager to find great gifts for their charges and a single donation from you can change a blah Christmas into a happy one for a foster child. The same rule could apply to scarves, gloves, hats and boots. If you can take an item and get it into the hands of somebody who would enjoy it, where is the harm? If you receive perfume from an Aunt that you can't wear, give it to a co-worker, neighbor or someone else so that it does not end up in a landfill contaminating our already overworked soil. Perhaps you have a girlfriend who is wild about a certain author, and you have a book you know she will love. Social graces tell us it is bad to re-gift so instead of being thought of as a bad person you will spend money, and energy that you can not afford to go out and buy her a new gift. You have not only wasted your money and energy, a perfectly good book waiting to be read will be left on a shelf. Then, some spring day you will decide to de-clutter your home and the unfortunate book will end up in a landfill. There is no law that says you have to re-gift an item in the same shape you received it. If you are crafty, you can take a sweater you will never wear and make a scarf and a hat out of it. Add a few embellishments and you have a great gift you can give to a loved one. Turn a blouse into a tote bag, a pair of shoes into some cute planters or an ugly vase into an incredible mosaic piece of art. Have an ugly lamp? Buy a new shade or use stamps and stencils to dress it up. Repaint the base or add embellishments you can find at any craft store. If you have a large collection of soaps, lotions and shampoos or electric razors you have no intention of using, find one of the many organizations that collect these items and send them to our troops who are in need of personal grooming items. Re-gifting and reusing items not only keeps them out of our landfills, it can save time, energy and money as you struggle with health issues. Don't think of this as re-gifting, think of it as a new form of going green. Save the holidays and our landfills. If you still can't bring yourself to re-gift, there are other options available to get these items into the hands of those who will appreciate them. You can sign up for Freecycle, a free online group that allows you to connect with others in your area so you can offer, and receive items for free. Another option is Craigs List, you can offer items for free, keeping them out of the landfills. I tend to believe that re-gifting will not have the same impact as our unwanted items ending up in our landfills and water supplies. Now if you'll forgive me, I will take my leave to wrap an unwanted book I received for my birthday so that my friend who couldn't afford it can finally read it. The etiquette police will have to find someone else to lay their guilt trip on as I plan to sleep like a baby tonight. Jane Kohler Please help us keep our programs and services going! Please give what you can. Thank you!
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