Lifestyle: special items, part 0

Self-tutoring about life and possessions: the tutor begins about special items.

With Christmas only hours away, some are very excited about what they might unwrap. Who can blame them – we live in a materialistic culture.

I’m too old to be excited by what I might get for Christmas; if I get nothing, I’ll be content anyway. I do like watching other people get what they want.

Whatever one might think about materialism, special items are real. I’ll define special item and give a few examples I’ve encountered:

Special item: an item that, by its quality or appeal, improves its owner’s quality of life.

The first example of a special item I recall is a bicycle that a kid across the street owned. The year was ’78; like me, he was 8 years old.

The bike in question was the first speed bike any of my friends owned. It was a three-speed, but looked like an “adult bike,” even though it was the same size as the rest of ours.

Watching him wheel it out to his driveway and get on it, I could tell he loved that bike: every time he took it out was special. I recall wishing I loved my bike as much as he loved his.

Another special item I recall was a red jacket I owned in my teens. In a high school of 1600 kids, there wasn’t another like it. I was new at that school; that red jacket helped identify me.

A couple of years back, my son brought me a mug from a Whistler band trip. Its dimensions and weight are perfect, and its design is splashy with colour. Furthermore, its interior is red, while outside it’s off-white. I just love that mug, but I never use it. Instead, I always serve my wife her coffee in that mug.

Special items are real. They needn’t be expensive; they’re special because, through their distinction and/or quality, they enhance their owners’ lives. A special item is a joy to use. My hope is that many receive one this Christmas:)