A llama Christmas

Okay, the most creative gift so far this Christmas season arrived via e-mail this morning. My good friend Jessica has donated money towards the purchase of a llama in our name from Heifer International. I was so inspired by this gift, I immediately went to the site and bought a flock of baby chicks in Jessica's name and finished our Christmas shopping for a few other members of the family, buying goats and ducks. Here's what the four gifts will provide families, as described on the Heifer International web site:

Llamas -

When resources are scarce, it's important that livestock don't use up land reserved for people. At home in rough, mountainous areas of Latin America, llamas are a blessing to families with limited pasture land, and they play a pivotal role in the cultural life of indigenous communities on the high plains of Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru.

Women weave their llamas' fleece into warm clothing to wear or sell. They load them up with goods for market and trek with them across rugged slopes at high altitudes. As they travel, llamas' padded feet don't damage the fragile terrain and their selective browsing doesn't destroy sparse vegetation.

Llamas and their kin, the alpaca, provide Heifer families with invaluable sources of transportation, income and wool, which is prized for making blankets, ponchos, carpet and rope.

Llamas are remarkably disease resistant and require little care; they can carry small loads for distances over rugged slopes at high altitudes.

Goats -

Did you know that more children around the world get their protein from goat's milk?

That's because goats thrive in extreme climates where other livestock can't, and eat grasses and leaves that cause other animals to turn up their noses (or snouts)!

And if it's a Heifer goat, one struggling family can receive up to a gallon of milk from it every single day. That's more than enough milk not only to drink, but to use to make cheese, butter or yogurt, plus to sell whatever's left and buy much-needed clothes, school supplies and medicine.

Although they appear tough and gruff, goats are actually so gentle that it's usually the family's children who regularly care for them. In this way, goats really do become "nannies;" teaching their young caregivers all kinds of skills while building their self-esteem.

Chicks -

Chickens are a real value. Starting at six months, they can lay up to 200 eggs a year — a reliable source of protein for children who otherwise subsist mostly on starches. Extra eggs can be sold to pay for school, clothes and medicine. And in the vegetable garden, chickens peck at bugs and weeds, scratch up the soil and enrich it with droppings.

Chicks are an elegant solution to improving a family's crops and their diet — and to the dilemma of what to give your socially aware friends this season.

Ducks -

When it comes to gift-giving, ducks make the perfect gift. These delightful creatures are good for the environment and people too. Ducks add protein to the diet from eating eggs, money in the pocket from selling eggs and ducks, and better crops in the fields, as ducks remove weeds and bugs and add fertilizer. Honor a friend or loved one with a flock of Heifer ducks sent in their name to a family in need.

If you are still struggling to find that perfect gift for the last person on your Christmas shopping list, I highly recommend giving to this organization. It makes the world better. Many thanks to Jessica for this most fabulous gift. Merry Christmas!