Gift season is upon us. In my extended family, in addition to exchanging holiday gifts, we have nine birthdays that we celebrate between Thanksgiving and Christmas. That doesn’t even count my husband and sons.
Quite honestly, I find the females in the family much easier to buy for. My nieces always enjoy my gifts and I enjoy giving them. Clothes, jewelry, candles, soaps–girly stuff always goes over well.
Photo by mysza831
The males in the family are another story. Will that shirt fit? Would they rather have a book and if so, on what topic? Or maybe they’re a gadget guy. I wonder, do they already have the pocket knife that folds up like a credit card or would they prefer the high-intensity flashlight that straps on to your head, hinting at a modern day coal miner? See what I mean? It’s really hard.
My two sons, ages 13 and 15, are old enough now that having a wish list helps everyone. Last year was the first year they put considerable time and thought into their lists, providing prices, places to order online and specific model numbers. The more meticulous one, my older son, got pretty much everything he wanted. My younger son, who left out a few key details, wished he had been more specific when Christmas morning came around.
Photo by kathycsus
A friend told me she also creates wish lists for her family at Christmas. Her requirements are pretty simple:
"If I can’t eat it or wear it, don’t buy me it."
She reinforced the need to be specific, not only in what you want, but also in what you don’t want.
"I was at Cosco the other day. I saw a musical carousel for sale and immediately realized that my husband would think about buying it for me, as he loves music boxes. So I told him, "See that carousel over there? Don’t buy it for me." I then went on to cut out pictures of what I did want, along with places to buy it. I’m not leaving anything to chance."
She emphasized the consequences of not following this process.
"You end up taking time to return the gift. But that’s not the worst of it. You have to look happy when you open it up."
Fake joy can be painful.
I think I’ll start on my list today…..
Whenever people ask me what I want for Christmas, I’m always hesitant to tell them, coz it makes me feel like I’m demanding something, and seems to take away the whole idea of gift-giving….plus I like being surprised.
But then you just reminded me of the last time someone bought me a gift, a surprise, and I didn’t like it at all. Then I felt bad for not liking it…etc etc.
But you know what, I think a good way to start is to do like your friend and start telling people what you DON’T want! I shall give that a try….
Looking forward to hearing how your experiment goes, Dora. Thanks for stopping by–great to hear your “voice.”