Archive - December 2006

It’s become a national addiction.

On my way to work this morning I cycled past the Morley Galleria shopping centre to see a line of cars filling the car park. There were already a number of people lined up in front of Myer, a couple of hours before opening time. Thousands of people are heading off to find a bargain in the post-Christmas sales.

Most cities around Australia start their sales on Boxing Day, the day after Christmas. We wait an extra day and that always seems to be a good reason to grumble. Each year we see people on TV talking about how awful it is that they have to wait an extra 24 hours before they max out their credit cards. They think it would be better all around if those who work in the retail industry only had the one day off for Christmas to recover from the extra stress of last minute Christmas shoppers before they face the barrage of post-Christmas shoppers.

Have we really become that addicted to consumerism that we can’t relax with our families for an extra few hours? Do we really need to fill our homes with extra ‘stuff’ that much and that soon?

As well as the many thousands that will head off to find a bargain today, there’s sure to be a long line of people waiting to exchange Christmas gifts that were the wrong size, wrong colour or just plain wrong.

I enjoy getting a bargain as much as anyone but I have no real desire to be crammed in next to thousands of other people, all wanting to be served at once. I have enough self-control and patience to wait a week or two until it all calms down.

Let me remind you of the coping strategies that I mention each year. If you are venturing into your local shopping centre to bag a bargain or two there are just two things to remember.

1. Stay calm amidst the chaos.

2. My shirt size is XL.

Posted by Rodney Olsen

Click here for regular email updates from this blog.

Technorati Tags: Sales – Shopping – Consumerism

It’s time to put the brakes on.

Brisbane’s Anglican Archbishop, Phillip Aspinall, is being reported as saying that we should take it easy on Sunday. No, not just this Sunday, every Sunday. He suggests that we should reclaim Sundays for family, friends and community life.

I think he’s got a point. We’ve made our lives so busy that we’re going flat out every day of the week. Sure, we might have a day or two away from our jobs over the weekend but we have become extremely skilled at replacing the frantic activity of our working week with other kinds of frantic activity on Saturday and Sunday.

Sunday used to be known as a day of rest but that’s no longer the case.

In the past even those who weren’t church goers would put Sunday aside as a day of relaxation, catching up with family and recharging for the week ahead. These days, Sunday has become like any other day of the week with more and more shops and businesses opening their doors and the majority of the population using the day to extend their already hectic schedule. Family and friends are being crowded out of our lives as they battle to find space for an appointment in our PDAs. Even when we do make time for those close to us it’s difficult to find a time that fits everyone else’s schedule.

I wonder how different life would look if we decided to turn back the hands of time and used Sunday as a time to rest, recharge and reflect.

We were never designed to run at 100% all of the time. We need to take time out for the sake of our minds, bodies and souls. If we want to reduce stress we need to restructure our time and take our Sundays back. Sure, we get a few hours here and there on different days but how much better would it be if we took an entire day to focus on the things that really matter; family, friends and faith?

We are the product of incredible design and we can handle enormous pressures and stresses if we only take time out to reconnect with the source of life.

Are you prepared to go against the flow and reclaim what your busy schedule has stolen from you? Maybe that’s a good start to your New Year’s Resolutions.

Posted by Rodney Olsen

Click here for regular email updates from this blog.

Technorati Tags: Phillip Aspinall – Sunday – New Year’s Resolutions