Last-minute Christmas gifts that come from the heart: Donate to charity this Christmas

If you haven't pinned down the perfect gift for Great Aunt Suzie yet and you don't know what to get your friend that has everything, fear not! Rather than pawing through the droopy poinsettias and the sausage sets at the grocery store for last-minute Christmas shopping, consider giving a charitable donation.

Why do charitable donations make great last-minute gifts?

• For starters, you can donate to most non-profits online in an instant. Many, like Heifer International, a non-profit that gifts of livestock and training to impoverished families, allow you to send an e-card or print a card at home to notify the recipient of a gift.
  
  
• Secondly, donations to charity are tax deductible expenses. You can save money on your taxes and do good at the same time!
  
  
• Practically speaking, there are plenty of people who don't need more "stuff." And there are certainly people on your last-minute gift list who don't need a random gift picked up at a convenience store. Making a donation to charity lets someone know that you're thinking about him, without adding to his clutter.
  
  
• Donations to charity are the "gift that keeps on giving". Not only do you feel good about making the donation, but your recipient feels good about being a part of the gift. The organization to who you choose to donate feels great because they get much-needed money to provide much-needed services. And the recipients of those services feel good because they're getting the help they need! Many charities even accept recurring donations online, which continue to the giving! The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, for example, is set up to receive either one-time donations or monthly donations.
  
  
• Think donating just cash is a bit boring? You can send more than just money. With The Gorilla Foundation, for instance, you can support the amazing Koko, a gorilla who knows American Sign Language, by sending an item off The Gorilla Foundation Wish List. Currently on the wish list? A DVD of the STOMP performances (for the gorillas to watch) and things like laptops and cameras for research. You can send any of these gifts in an instant via Amazon.com, and can even send the foundation gift cards.

So instead of braving the crowds for the next few days to finish your Christmas shopping, cozy up to your computer with a cup of cocoa and donate to a few of your (and your recipients') favorite charities. You can even check the validity of your charity of choice with an agency like Charity Navigator, which evaluates and examines non-profits before providing them with a rating. And if you need a few ideas for some charities that could use some love this Christmas, here are a few of my favorites (with links straight to their donation pages):

• Horizons for Homeless Children
  An organization that enriches the lives of homeless children in Massachusetts through high-quality early-education services.
  
  
• Make A Child Smile
  Such a simple but important mission: to be a source of support to children with chronic or life-threatening illnesses and their families by having folks send cards, letters, and small gifts to the featured children and their siblings.
  
  
• Prison Book Program
  Featured on IT&O before, the Prison Book Program provides quality reading material to inmates across the country, many of whom are working to better their lives by educating themselves and becoming literate.
  
  
• Special Olympics A world-wide organization changing lives of people with intellectual disabilities by providing Special Olympians with access to sports and the camaraderie of a team.

There are also dozens of local charities that need your support. To find one in your area, you can search via Network for Good or Just Give.

Happy holidays!

A time for thanks

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and though I try to remind myself daily that my life is full of blessings, it seems especially relevant to do so in light of the holiday.

I am thankful for my family. Not just for all of the generic love and togetherness stuff, but because I am lucky enough to have amazing people to whom I am related. I appreciate my mother's understanding, my father's sense of humor, my brothers' goofiness and friendship, my sister-in-law's upbeat personality, my grandmothers' ability to triumph through adversity, my boyfriend's sense of adventure, my cousins' unique fabulosity (it's a made-up word... so what?), my aunts' advice, and my uncles' protectiveness.

I am thankful for my friends. Again, it's not just because there are people with whom I can hang out and have a good time, but because my friends are unique and wonderful. I won't mention them all by name, but I will say that it's wonderful to have friends who love to talk about books, friends who are up for adventure, friends who are musical, friends who like theatre, friends who I can call late at night, friends who know my past, friends who will be part of my future.

I am thankful for a place to live. It's not just any place to live; we just moved in this month, and I love it. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to paint the walls, to decorate, to reorganize, and to clear out the clutter. I am thankful that I have room to move in this house. I am thankful that I can walk to the post office, the grocery store, and into town. I love that it's in a part of the world that I think of as home. Most of all, I am thankful to have a comfortable place to call my own (even if it's just a rental).

I am thankful for fuzzy friends like the hedgehogs, dogs, hairless rats, and other pets I have had the privilege of knowing over the years. (I am also thankful for non-fuzzy pets!) Animals give us such strength and comfort; I believe that they are every bit as soulful as people. I also love learning about the work people do with animals like Koko the Gorilla (who has been taught to sign with humans) and service animals who help their owners overcome a number of challenges.

I am thankful for language. I love to read and I love to write; I realize that if I had grown up in another country I might not have had such easy access to books and language. I might not have had an opportunity to be educated and to come to love words. My life would be very different without words and language. I also love American Sign Language — it's a beautiful language and one that I feel privileged to learn.

I am thankful for my faith and the ability and strength to believe what I want to believe. My faith is a hodgepodge of beliefs and customs from a variety of religions (for a breakdown of your own medley of beliefs, try taking the Belief-O-Matic), but it is completely me. Having faith helps me get up in the morning and say thank you before I go to bed at night, and for that kind of calm and comfort, I am eternally grateful.

Most of all, I am thankful for the opportunity to be me. I am grateful that I am able to see my family when I want, love whom I choose, live where I want, interact with animals, speak my mind, read about everything, and keep the faith. I know that many people don't feel comfortable expressing who they are because of where they live or who they live with. I am thankful to have been blessed with a pretty good life, overall, and the opportunity to be me — flaws and all!Happy Thanksgiving!