Something is happening this Christmas season that makes me sad. I don’t know how wide this phenomenon has spread, but I’m worried.

More and more I hear about people opting to not give Christmas presents.

Like any good and right American, I love the speech Linus gives in “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” I also worry about the overcreep of commercialism. But does that mean we need to quit such a great tradition whole hog?

Some of you may read this and think of me as a greedy little mongrel, begging for another gift card or some trinket I will forget about before 2015 starts. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

I don’t like people talking about not giving Christmas presents because then I can’t experience the joy of getting something for someone else.

As I have grown up, I have learned how to get more pleasure from giving than from receiving. I know I have enough and can go through the holiday season without getting any gifts, but I can’t imagine spending all the weeks leading up to Christmas without hunting to find that right gift.

Now sometimes people have legitimate concerns about gift-giving and would prefer a donation to a charity or a gift for someone less fortunate.

I can totally get behind that. I mean, it might not give me the same thrill as looking through stores and wrapping the gift so I can see the look on the face of someone I care about when they see what I got, but a gift is a gift.

My problem comes when I hear people say that we shouldn’t exchange gifts because the whole process if too hard or too stressful. To be honest, that kind of perspective just bums me out.

I know that the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas can fill up quickly. Like a lot of other people, I have to go to holiday concerts and Christmas parties along with my regular day-to-day responsibilities.

The idea of heading into a crowded store doesn’t always get me excited. And I loathe the idea of rushing to get all my shopping done before we all sit down for turkey and stuffing.

But the notion that I have to put my generosity on hold because it might be inconvenient feels a whole lot worse. Maybe I want to go through a lot of trouble to get the special people in my life a gift. Maybe the hassle makes it even more gratifying.

I think we should just stop talking about presents. No more price limits, no more lists, no more ground rules. If you want to get something for someone, go ahead and do it. If someone gets you a present, thank them sincerely. If you buy a gift for someone, and they don’t reciprocate, let it go. If someone gives you something, and you have no gift in return, consider doing something nice for them.

But most of all, stop worrying about who gives what and what you get. Just do nice things for the people you care about. Because, in the end, isn’t that what Linus was getting at?