Here it is — six days before Christmas and I’m not ready. In fact, I am not even close to being ready. There are no Christmas lights up, no Christmas tree. But perhaps that is just as well, because I have bought no presents to put under said tree.

It is a sad state of affairs, but I haven’t panicked yet. I am too busy too panic.

I must admit I am not the holiday’s biggest fan. It seems to have lost any meaning beyond gift-giving. Not that there is anything wrong with gift-giving, but it should come from the heart. These days, magazines and newspapers seem to be full of outrageously priced items you can give your loved ones for the holiday — to show how much you care. My favourite is a recent newspaper article that details how much you should tip all the service providers in your life. Sure!

I like to think I show how much I care in a million other, non-monetary ways. But maybe I am just showing my age. Maybe it is just sour grapes because I can’t afford to shower my family with these luxurious gifts. Besides, I thought the ’80s was the decade of overindulgence. Is it back again? Is this another trend I have missed?

Fortunately, most of my family has been too busy to notice how far behind the ball we are on the Christmas thing. My daughter Kate, who is doing her master’s degree in history at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ont., has been busy marking student papers. She is off this morning to proctor an exam, which means she will have exams to mark tomorrow. That should keep her sufficiently stressed out so she won’t notice. Norm, my photographer husband, has also been busy with assignments. As long as he has a camera in his hands, he’ll never notice. Besides, he considers last-minute shopping a challenge to be enjoyed.

The only one who notices the lack of Christmas preparation is my younger daughter, Rachel, who has just arrived home from Calgary where she attends university. Her boyfriend, Chris, arrives on Dec. 27 to spend 10 days with us. So, Rachel’s stress level is building as she sees our out-of-control household through the eyes of a newcomer. It isn’t pretty.

But Christmas is Rachel’s favourite time of year. She plans to spend the next few days reacquainting herself with Toronto shops as she searches out the perfect presents.

And perhaps that is the real secret of the holidays — time. I remember when I was a kid that getting ready for Christmas was a delicious period. Early in December, I shopped at the five-and-dime store, checked out Dresden’s two jewellery stores, and consulted with John at McKay’s hardware store and found the most wonderful gifts for my family. I remember spending hours wrapping and decorating presents, drawing individual cards. Those presents went under the tree — which, of course, was up at least one week before the big day. In fact, putting up the tree was a family event.

My wrapping now seems to be hastily applied on Christmas Eve to presents that were bought in a state of panic two days earlier. Cards are scraps of wrapping paper.

But, then, life seems to be hastily applied these days. Is it true that time goes by faster as you grow older? Or are we all doing too much, and putting family at the end of our to-do lists?

Maybe that is the No. 1 gift we can give — our time. There seems to be precious little of it. So, if lack of supply ups the price, it is indeed a luxury item.

Maybe that should be my New Year’s resolution — to find balance in my life so I can give time to the people I love.

Have a joyous holiday season. And may all your resolutions bear fruit. IE