What should you give the love of your life? Every time a special occasion comes along, it gets more and more difficult deciding on what sort of gift to buy. Year in and year out, retailers promote the usual suspects: can’t miss (clothes, accessories, a sound system or plasma TV ), boringly practical (tools for crafting, a sweater for breezy winter nights, cookware), adult  (sex toys, aphrodisiacs, lingerie),  adventurous (trips abroad, escape weekends, bungee jumping) or totally extravagant (Harry Winston jewelry, a yacht, a business of your own?). Great gifts are those chosen with loving care and the worst are those given for the sake of giving. I have a friend whose husband gives her cash on her birthday with the instruction to “just get something you really like.” She is, undoubtedly, crushed by his indifference though he is indignant at her reaction since he sees it as a way of avoiding a big mistake.  

Of course, one woman’s junk may be another woman’s treasure. I love getting flowers while other ladies in my circle would rather receive things that sparkle.The best gifts are unexpected and many times don’t even cost a thing. I keep a treasure box of the special things my love has given me since the start of our relationship. A styropor cup on which he drew a picture of a face. The card from a Tillandsia plant arrangement he gave me.  An eternity ring he fashioned from electrical wire. My friends chide me for being sentimental, even “silly” but, I derive the greatest pleasure  from going through this chest and recalling the occasions when I first laid my eyes on them. No, I’m not saying my eyes won’t pop out if I get a robin’s egg blue box from Tiffany’s. What I’m saying is every gesture is meaningful and doesn’t have to come with a high price tag. The thought behind the gift is everything. 

Bookmark to: