Holiday cards without guilt

IN RECENT YEARS, the sweet tradition of sending Christmas cards has been maligned as yet another tree-killing, carbon-spewing, toxics-emitting, landfill-clogging eco-sin. Last year, an elementary school in South Wales banned holiday cards in the classroom as environmentally unfriendly and socially ostracizing for the less popular kids. Everyone was urged to send pollution-free e-cards instead.

This year, as the economy spirals downward and even newspaper ads for De Beers diamonds are mindful of a new frugality ("Fewer, Better Things"), mailed seasonal greetings are sure to be another casualty. Self-help articles for the budget-conscious suggest cutting the usual list in half, or sending just to the people who sent to you, or eliminating the tradition altogether.

We on this page are as green as the next balsam fir, but we suspect the sudden concern for virgin forests is a convenient excuse for some people who just don't want to be bothered. Sending that greeting with the festive stamp - recycled from last year's collection, if desired - costs little more than time. It is a kind of ritual in-gathering of the tribe, a reminder that the person receiving the card is part of your world and thoughts. Better yet, choose the card to reflect the recipient's personality - funny, religious, traditional - and add a thank-you note for what he or she has meant in the past year.

It's a shame that the personal holiday greeting is going the way of caroling or home-baked cookies. The daily postal delivery is clogged with catalogs, bills, and solicitations; how rare a pleasure to discover a handwritten note amid the clutter. In the dark of an uneasy year, glad tidings are especially welcome. And the Christmas card is a 42-cent gift.