WRAPPING GIFTS

Today the wrapping begins!  I will set up a table.  Get the paper out of the closet.  Make sure I have plenty of tape and wrap each package.

It is not as much fun as when we had little ones.  I miss buying dolls.  And bears.  And trucks.  And toy dishes.  Shopping for adults lacks wonder.  Lacks surprise.  Cash or a gift card in an envelope just does not say Merry Christmas.  And a token under-the-tree gift or the usual “we get every year” does not bring excitement to the unwrapping process.

Or maybe I am in a rut.  Maybe I need to do away with my traditional under-the-tree gift for the adults.  (Calendars – hey, not giving away any surprises.  They know they will get a calendar.)  Maybe I need to say to the younger generation, “No cash this year.  No gift cards.”  Maybe I need to go shopping.  Maybe I need to make the gifts personal again.  Maybe I need to…….

“Mary, you are doing it again.”

“What am I doing again, God?”

“Sit down child.  This might take a bit of your time.”

“Mary, when your children and grandchildren were babies, they asked for toys.  And you gave them toys.  As they grew up, you wrapped their desires and placed them under the tree.  Now that they are adults or on the road to adulthood, their desires have changed.  Be it cash, a gift card or that annual calendar, you are fulfilling their desires.”

“But, I can see them using a “gift.”  Money is, well, money is just money.  It is every day.  Nothing special.”

“Let me try again.  Jesus was a baby.  A baby is just a baby.  An everyday happening.  Nothing special.  Except, this baby, this one baby, was the perfect gift.  I gave my children the gift they needed.”

“So, I am to give what they need not what makes me feel good?”

“Well done.  Now go put some love in each package and you will have a very Merry Christmas.”

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Christmas can be very stressful.  We all have an image we try to live up to.  It can be how Christmas was when we were children.  It can be a scene from a movie.  It can be how the neighbors celebrate. 

Do not try to recreate your memories or make your home like a movie set or outdo the neighbors.  This year, give gifts purchased or made with love.  Bless other’s lives with your generosity.  Relax instead of trying to make each year bigger and better.  This year enjoy!!