Christmas Gifts

One often hears the phrase “Christmas is more about giving than receiving,” and yet we just as often hear people describing the gifts that they received.

Don’t get me wrong – there’s nothing wrong with being pleased with a gift, and expressing one’s appreciation to the giver.

But Christmas is about giving.

Over the years I have spent many hours trolling the malls and various shops looking for “the perfect gift.” I haven’t always known what that gift would be – more often than not I had absolutely no idea of what I was looking for.

I found that inspiration would strike without warning; I’d see something and realize that that was exactly the right gift for ___________.

The best part came when the gift was opened, and the recipient would express their gratitude, confirming my choice of “the perfect gift.”

There are a couple such occasions that stand out…

For years, probably from the time I was 7 or 8, I would buy my mother a container of Jeanne Naté powder. It started when I was out shopping with my Grandmother, asking her what she thought would be a good gift for my mother.

She suggested the powder, and paid for it – a seven year-old’s allowance didn’t quite cover the cost – and, on Christmas morning, my mother was thrilled.

I bought the same powder for her for the next four or five years; it had become a tradition.

One year my mother suggested that I didn’t have to buy her the powder, as it was a bit pricey, and she felt that I shouldn’t feel obliged to spend a good chunk of my allowance on one gift.

I gave that some thought for a while, and kept my ears open for clues as to what she might want (or need) as a gift. My patience paid off.

A few days later I went to the A&P at Churchill Plaza, and bought a pair of salt & pepper shakers. They weren’t fancy. In fact, they were much the same glass-and-chrome shakers you’d find in the average diner.

My mom loved them!

We had several sets of shakers, some too fancy for everyday use, some quite plain but rather ineffective – you know the kind, the ones you have to turn upside-down and bang on the bottom to get anything out.

The shakers cost about $2 (in 1973), and really weren’t anything special. But they were a practical gift that was given with love and appreciation.

Note: salt & pepper shakers, or any type of houseware or home appliance, is a good gift for a child to give. However – husbands, under any circumstances, should not buy their wives anything “practical.”

The other gift that stands out is one I gave to my uncle – my Dad’s brother.

He was a railway engineer, and had several railway-themed items in his Rec Room.

As I was perusing a mall in Hamilton, near where I was then living, I found a gimmicky lamp in the shape of a rail crossing wig-wag. It had a crossbuck and flashing red lights, and really served no practical purpose.

But he loved it.

There was nothing like it available here in the Sault, and he would proudly turn it on when anyone came to visit – especially his railway buddies.

So, in the true spirit of Christmas, because Christmas is more about giving than receiving, why not share what some of the best gifts you ever GAVE have been?

~ David