The song "The Twelve Days of Christmas" always fascinated me… the idea that someone could give a person a series of gifts each day and keep building on them. I was wondering how many gifts that actually ends up being… In our work as Professional Organizers, we get a lot busier in January, obviously from New Years’ Resolutions, but also because people received a lot of Christmas presents to organize and put away!
So, the answer is 364 gifts that the person receives from her true love. Giving or receiving this many gifts definitely goes against our professional advice! And the cost…! Well, this year, the cost hit a 22-year high for the Twelve Days of Christmas gift items, at $18,920, according to the PNC Christmas Price Index. Yes, there is a person on their staff who researches the labor cost of drummers, dancers, and maids-a-milking. This image is a screenshot from their site of the chart over the 22 years they have been tracking this price index. Visit their site and take special note of the "ticker" that is crawling below the chart!
If anyone asks, I will just take the five golden rings.
I just learned this year that the song about the 12 Days of Christmas originated in England during a time when Christian worshipping was prohibited. The song was a way people could remember key doctrines of Christianity …it and could be sung in public! (Don’t let the ACLU find out. They may try to ban the singing of this previously-thought-to-be secular song.)
Partridge in a Pear Tree: Jesus
2 Turtle Doves: Old and New Testiments
3 French Hens: Holy Trinity
4 Calling Birds: 4 books of the Gospel
5 Golden Rings: Pentatuch
….I can’t remember them all.
I heard this on our local Christian radio station. (The River in Austin)
So, it really isn’t a call to ‘buy more stuff’.