In my day “Rock Band” was some kitchen pans, a wooden spoon, and a Kleenex box with rubber bands…

It’s December, which officially means several things:

1) If you live in a place like Chicago, where I live, the weather has suddenly decided to jack you in the face with a load of snow which brings out the hordes of slow (in a mental way, not speed) who forgot how to drive in such conditions over the past seven months.

2) Relatives, friends and even strangers start to send you holiday cards with pictures of their kids on it. Like photos of my third cousins seven times removed really put me in the Christmas spirit…

3) You start to feel guilty, even in this economy, about all the stuff you have and feel the need to contribute to the less fortunate in some way.

Lucky for those of you, like me, who work in an office, there are a variety of opportunities to work on number 3. The IT department in my office is holding a food drive. Someone has put up the address for soldiers at Walter Reed so we can send them Christmas cards. And yours truly and the Fun Committee has “adopted” 30 kids that are in need of Christmas presents.

Luckily someone explained to these children about how to fill out their wish list. Most put down clothing and toys, each item not costing more than $25.00. It made me smile when I chose a 2 year old little girl who wanted nothing more complicated than blocks.

This was a harsh 180 from the wish lists we used to get at the church I used to belong to. My mom and I used to run the Christmas Gift program there and were shocked and somewhat disgusted by the items that these kids asked for.

Here are some examples of what kids asked for:
- iPods (not the tiny one either)
- Laptop computers
- Nintendo Wii
- Flat Screen Television (at least 26 inch)
- Cell Phones
- Dirt Bikes

These are kids who don’t have winter jackets and whose parents can’t afford a holiday meal and they are asking for things I wouldn’t even dare to have asked for. (Except the iPod and boy did my mom freak when she found out how pricy they were…)

Which is why I was so happy to read the list this year and find that kids wanted toys that took some creativity and imagination. Sure I had a lot of toys as a kid but I also had a cardboard box fort and loved to color. So if this year you decide to purchase a toy for one of the many charities that are out there collecting, I ask that you go for the simple. This is the year we bring imagination back to children.

~The Office Scribe