Give the Ultimate Gift this Kirihimete
This article was written by Te Kahukura Boynton, founder of Māori Millionaire. This text shall not constitute or substitute getting financial advice from a qualified professional. This text is general in nature and does not consider your personal circumstances.
Forget the long list of presents to buy. Ditch the Kirihimete wish list. This year, I want to challenge you to be brave and different.
I’ve always thought Christmas was a huge opportunity for shops to make heaps of money - whilst not thinking about the core whakaaro around what Christmas is.
Some people get anxious when the holiday season comes up, especially if you know that you can’t afford to make ends meet, let alone buy presents for people. It can be hard to tell those we love that we can’t afford to spoil them, and after the record cost of living this year, I don’t blame you.
My brother moved to the UK when I was about eight. Since then, Christmas has always been about seeing him. I’d trade all the gifts in the world to hang with my big brother. My immediate family (my mum, brother and I) don’t always bother with gifts. Sometimes, we find something we think the other person will appreciate, and if we can, we will get it. Other times, money is tight, and we won’t.
We’ve normalised this over the past few years, something I encourage you to do as well. Why? Because there’s so much more to Christmas than filling a rubbish bag with wrapping paper. Each year, 25% more household rubbish is created during Christmas, equating to roughly 25 million extra tonnes of waste.
So, I’ve collected a few of my favourite ways to tackle the Christmas holidays. You don’t have to be as quirky as my family is with normalising no gifts at all, but you can do a few things to help ease some of the pressure this year.
Normalise talking about putea. It can be tough to talk about this in whānau, where incomes and people's financial situations differ. In saying that, we don’t know what we don’t know. Start having conversations about how you wish to celebrate Christmas with your whanau. Remember that just because you’ve done things a certain way doesn’t mean evolution cannot occur. Kia kaha, kia māia, kia manawanui!
My second tip is to buy things throughout the year, even better when they’re on special. I like to do this, and at the bottom of my wardrobe is a small box I keep them in. Each birthday, or Kirihimete, I’ll go through the box. Even if it doesn’t sort all the gifts, it does help.
The other Kirihimete tip is to automate it. If you are a family who likes to travel for Christmas, or you just won't be able to manage gifts, a Christmas savings account will work wonders. It could be $20 a week, which is $1k a year; everything helps.
Get involved in Christmas clubs. Many retailers use cool rewards systems when it comes to this. Don’t miss out on a few dollars here and there - it all adds up.
Go handmade! My favourite thing to do for Christmas is to be old-school creative and get in the kitchen. Do some baking, make a gift, or even do something as simple as writing a letter. Get the kids involved; you can have some fun with this one. Be creative!
If you still feel like you just want to spoil someone you love, my last tip is to at least shop local. By shopping locally, you are investing in a small local business. The business will be grateful for your support, and your loved one will have more of a quirky story than a generic gift.
If you’re still worried about the Christmas season, please also know that it is perfectly okay to opt out of traditional Christmas celebrations and do your own thing. You dictate how you live your life; you make the decisions, sis! As I continue to grow, I learn more and more about what’s important to me. Much to the shock and horror of my 6-year-old self, I no longer care for pretty and pink but will always opt for aroha, manaakitanga and whānau.
Remember the important things this year and ignore everything else.
For more information about the Māori Millionaire mission, head to maorimillionaire.com.