Your stuff can wait
Perhaps it's my bah humbug attitude of the holidays I have acquired since Xavier's death, but I have some serious concerns about the back-to-work legislation expected to be imposed on our postal workers this week.
To be clear, I have no friends or family (that I am aware of) in the postal industry and nor do I pretend to know all the facts of this issue. However, the argument looking in from the outside is quite simple:
The quality of people's lives versus the commercialism of Christmas. It is a classic battle between people and stuff.
Postal workers say they are fighting for better working conditions, for work-life balance so they can spend more time living not working. The government wants to force them back to work to ensure gifts and cards get delivered in time for Christmas. Because it is a huge inconvenience for Canadians not to receive these things.
When did stuff become more important than people?
Aunt Ann will survive if she doesn't get her annual Christmas card from you and so will little Rachel if she has to get something else from Santa and her new scooter later.
Perhaps we need a Christmas without ribbons, without tags, without packages, boxes or bags ... to fully appreciate the true meaning of Christmas again.
I ask you again, what's more important, people or stuff? Is it fair to force these people back to work just so these piles of packages and letters can be delivered-- only to be piles of stuff in our landfills later? I understand back to work legislation regarding emergency services and the life or wellbeing of people... but this, really?
My message may be a bit too simplified, but sometimes we need to dumb it down to really see the absurdity in what we are fighting about. Don't get me wrong, it is incredibly disrupting and frustrating when your packages don't arrive and you don't get the stuff you paid for.
But, do you have your family or a loved one? Do you have a home to spend Christmas in and love in your heart? Then stop complaining. I would give up all of my stuff, just to have my son back in my arms. In the end, all that stuff is meaningless.
Let our postal workers have more time with their families. The stuff can wait.
Perhaps it's my bah humbug attitude of the holidays I have acquired since Xavier's death, but I have some serious concerns about the back-to-work legislation expected to be imposed on our postal workers this week.
To be clear, I have no friends or family (that I am aware of) in the postal industry and nor do I pretend to know all the facts of this issue. However, the argument looking in from the outside is quite simple:
The quality of people's lives versus the commercialism of Christmas. It is a classic battle between people and stuff.
Postal workers say they are fighting for better working conditions, for work-life balance so they can spend more time living not working. The government wants to force them back to work to ensure gifts and cards get delivered in time for Christmas. Because it is a huge inconvenience for Canadians not to receive these things.
"The issue has quickly become tense for many Canadians because Canada Post is crucial to delivering gifts, cards and other mail during the Christmas season." (from the London Free Press online Nov. 26, 2018).
When did stuff become more important than people?
Aunt Ann will survive if she doesn't get her annual Christmas card from you and so will little Rachel if she has to get something else from Santa and her new scooter later.
Perhaps we need a Christmas without ribbons, without tags, without packages, boxes or bags ... to fully appreciate the true meaning of Christmas again.
I ask you again, what's more important, people or stuff? Is it fair to force these people back to work just so these piles of packages and letters can be delivered-- only to be piles of stuff in our landfills later? I understand back to work legislation regarding emergency services and the life or wellbeing of people... but this, really?
My message may be a bit too simplified, but sometimes we need to dumb it down to really see the absurdity in what we are fighting about. Don't get me wrong, it is incredibly disrupting and frustrating when your packages don't arrive and you don't get the stuff you paid for.
But, do you have your family or a loved one? Do you have a home to spend Christmas in and love in your heart? Then stop complaining. I would give up all of my stuff, just to have my son back in my arms. In the end, all that stuff is meaningless.
Let our postal workers have more time with their families. The stuff can wait.
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