Family Volunteering At Christmas
Though every family has its own way of celebrating the Christmas holiday, Santa Claus seems to be a part of every young child’s perfect Christmas. He’s such an innate part of our holiday culture, it’s impossible for little ones, today, to avoid learning about Santa’s flying sleigh and his midnight visit to the chimney. Still, some parents worry that placing too much emphasis on what Santa will leave under the tree encourages greediness in their children.
This worry can be eased, if parents remember that, according to the legend, the bounty that Santa leaves under the tree on Christmas morning is based on every child’s good behavior. So, while a child may expect a big pile of wonderful toys, Santa expects something in return-that the child be nice and good, as the song says.
What many adults forget is that being nice and good-as well as compassionate and empathetic-are traits that come naturally to most children. From the time they’re born, children seek comfort and safety, and once they’ve reached the age when they accept the safety of their own environment, most children have a strong desire to share or spread that feeling to others. Watch a small child care for a baby doll, or even a new pet, and you can see how important is it to the child, to share the feeling of comfort.
If parents learn to recognize and nurture these tendencies, they can help their kids develop lifelong habits of generosity and compassion. It can begin as simply as encouraging a child who follows a parent around, wanting to “help” as the parent works, and allowing the child to actually help. Being helpful can become second nature to a child.
Christmastime is the perfect season to bolster and help build these feelings in a child. It’s a great time for children to begin to learn that they have a lot to offer the world outside their immediate family, and that they can have an impact on the lives of people they may not even know, or know well. In fact, Christmas is the perfect season to involve the whole family in voluntary activities that benefit others.
The kinds of activities that teach children to help others can be as simple as helping a neighbor with yard work, or feeding a friend’s pet, when its family is away. Activities that garner appreciation, no matter how easy or simple, will teach a young child the value of helping others.
Children who learn to volunteer at a young age are more likey to continue this compassionate behavior as adults. There’s no better time than the Christmas holidays to begin that kind of “good-for-goodness-sake” behavior. It’s what Christmas really is all about.
Brought to you by Imaginary Greetings, a routine contributor of valuable family related content. To truly brighten your child’s eyes this Christmas season, compose a letter from Santa.