Three minutes of CNN cured me for life. The American reporter stood with her microphone amongst the busy shoppers, reporting for the thirteenth hour in a marathon run for the best deals in town.

The day after Thanksgiving, also known as Black Friday in the U.S., is an insane invention made up by folks who see the holiday season as the best time of the year to make some cold, hard cash. It’s an inofficial holiday in which shoppers storm the malls at the stroke of midnight on Thanksgiving night to grab what they can ~ fast. A friend of mine posted on Facebook that he would be working as a seasonal employee in the men’s shoe department of Macy’s in New York City. He sounded a little scared at the rush that was about to come at him.

The trouble with such consumer-oriented thinking is that not only does Thanksgiving become the event before you shop; Christmas becomes the reason you do too. Like many women, I like to browse the boutiques, but to me it’s not a sport to see who can get the most stuff the quickest. And quite honestly, the stress of it all is a tad repulsive.

Every year I try to do something a little different to celebrate the season in a slow, calm way. To me Christmas is about celebrating the love you share with others. It is about showing you care by spending time with, not necessarily money on, the people you positively adore.

This year I am giving the gift of time, visiting my loved ones, spending time listening, laughing and loving with profound connection. To me that is the true reason for the season.

Time isn’t something you can buy. You can only spend it. I prefer to do that outside the shopping chaos our society encourages. In my view, time well-spent is worth more than money in the bank.