I imagine now that it’s two days before Christmas, you might be bracing yourself for a final trip to a store to buy one more gift or two. I’ve certainly done that many times in the past, despite the Christmas rule-breaking skills I’ve developed.

Before you head out on that errand, consider a few things I just learned from this Grist article:

• One study found three-fourths of Americans feeling the holidays are too materialistic.Of U.S. adults who receive gifts during the holidays, 83% receive unwanted items.
• Three-fourths of U.S. garages are too full of stuff to fit a car on in.
• The U.S. has 3.1% of the world’s children, but 40% of its toys.

To turn Nike’s slogan upside down (or right side out?), I suggest that when it comes to buying yet another gift, we just don’t do it.

My husband Thor and I are putting our energy this year into hosting a Christmas dinner for ten: friends, and family of friends. We’ll cook and talk and laugh — with no gifts involved, at least, not physical ones. Thor and I are exchanging a few gifts in the morning; I’m not opposed to all gifts. I’m saying that when it comes to the compulsion for buying yet more gifts, we can choose to just not do it.