Giving is greatest gift for Lushaba family
● Five-year-old Kuhlekwethu Lushaba will not be unwrapping any gifts on Christmas morning, nor does he have a tree decked to the nines.
It’s not because his parents can’t afford to buy him presents or a tree. Rather, the Umhlanga, KwaZulu-Natal, family’s tradition is to celebrate the important day by not exchanging presents but by giving to those who are in dire need of Christmas cheer.
This festive season Kuhlekwethu and his three sisters, eight-year-old Siphosethu and Siphosami and Phakade, both 14, have donated clothing to an orphanage on the KwaZulu-Natal north coast.
Their reasons vary from wanting to give to the poor and refusing to support the commercialisation of Christmas to cutting costs and not wanting to increase their waste footprint with festive packaging.
“There’s no Christmas for us. It’s the same in my home from January to December. Gifts are given on birthdays but Christmas is the time my children have been taught to give back,” said Thando Lushaba, mom to the four siblings. “It’s something my mother instilled in me and I wanted to do the same with my children.”
Siphosami, who has been helping needy communities for the past four years with donations of sanitary pads and soccer kits among other items, said she felt fulfilled by her festive good deeds.
“Christmas is a time for giving. It’s wonderful that we can bring a little cheer to people less fortunate than us.”
Giving gifts is also not part of Pretoria consultant Virginia Keppler’s Christmas tradition.
She prefers to shower her loved ones with presents on their birthdays.
“It’s not part of my tradition. One Christmas, after church, the pastor asked my daughter what gifts she had received.
“She told him it was Jesus’s birthday, not hers. I was laughing for days because the pastor was totally shocked.”
Mounds of packaging and discarded wrapping is also deterring eco-conscious families from gifting.
Anele Sololo, general manager of RecyclePaperZA, said the festive season was a good time for South Africans to assess their waste footprint.
“With early festive shopping sprees and online shopping deliveries, you might find yourself with more paper packaging than you know what to do with.
“Not only vital for protecting our goods from the shop to the front door, cardboard boxes can also be reused, repurposed and recycled.”
Ballito mom Jody Cameron will not have to deal with excess gift-wrap and packaging.
“I’m not buying presents this year, rather I’m using the money on experiences, which are more memorable than random presents.
“I’ve noticed the last few years that unless the present is practical — which can then make it a boring present like clothes or socks — it’s used for a few days or looked at and then packed away and forgotten. No-one remembers the presents after it’s all passed — we remember the time together.”