It’s that time of year when a lot of people are in gift giving mode. Today we received an early Christmas gift (or was it a late Hanuka one?)
We’re currently house-sitting in a place with two cats.
Shortly after we arrived we found a deposit by the front door which had clearly been left by one of them. It was a rather sloppy poo and required a fair bit of cleaning up. I’m sure it was one of the cats making a statement.
This morning there was a different offering – thankfully. Sitting at the front door, looking very pleased with itself was one of the cats with a dead possum. While, it’s not something which we want I suspect from a cat’s perspective it was a great honour to bestow on us. Perhaps this means they’ve finally decided to like us.
Being a recipient of an unwanted gift got me thinking (a somewhat bad habit of mine – thinking that is).
How often do we give gifts which are inappropriate? This could be because the item is not relevant for that person, is not something they’d use or relate to, is something like that which you’ve received and are passing it on because you have to give them something or many other reasons.
When we’re giving gifts are we doing so because we want to express our feelings for that person or are we acting out of a sense of obligation (we ‘should’ give them something)?
At this time of year stop to think about what you’re saying to your gift recipient with your offering. Would it be of value for them? Put yourself in their shoes and think about how you’d feel if you were receiving it. Would it make you feel warm and fuzzy towards the giver (you) or “OK this weird teapot is still doing the rounds”?
I think what we tend to do is work from a place of “this is what I’d like so they would too”. That’s obviously one step up from re-gifting the teapot but the idea of a gift is to express how you feel about the other person, not make a statement about you, isn’t it?
While this might need some extra time and thought there are some simple ways around the gift-giving dilemma.
Most people have some beliefs or attitudes about what can be improved in the world. It could be supplying water to remote villages, caring for stray or hurt animals, saving the environment, supporting people with depression, the list is endless. If you’re really challenged about finding a gift for someone, make a donation to a charity in their name. Just make sure it’s one they’re interested in and not just supporting your favourite organisation.
Whatever you do, I hope you enjoy the upcoming festive season.