Keeping the tradition, rethinking it, adding value to it - holiday gift giving lessons
Meaningful & Thoughtful
Gift giving this year will be more than checking off a list and mailing off packages to loved ones and friends. Given the anxiety created by the pandemic, the transience of what is dear to us, gifting this year will take on an even deeper meaning. Wrapped up treats and gift exchanges have come to represent a lasting expression of care and thoughtful in exercise. It can range from gift cards for stores or restaurants to charitable institutions, care packages, holistic experiences and such...
As we reminisce about our past experiences with the holiday season, it is not as if we didn't put thought into our actions. It appears as if we have fallen into a routine, rushing around completing tasks as the year draws to a close. This game-changing year of epic events, we have had a mirror held up to everything that counts, to pause and appreciate the things that truly matter. No wonder this season we are availing of the opportunity to re-examine, ponder, reinvent and refresh.
Anxious & Fun
Giving and receiving Gifts is fun, makes you feel loved and like a child once again. It validates you in unseen ways, strengthens your relationship and cements your bonds, even though you do not need a gift to do any of the above. It is simple - a gift speaks of feelings. Whether you are the receiver or the giver. Shopping for a gift makes one anxious but seeing the warm smile when the package is opened and received is well worth all the trouble. Thoughts and effort are always more relevant than the amount spent since it does not mean it will be appreciated more. Often simple handmade gifts will find a home rather than an impersonal expensive one.
Lessons Learned
And with gift-giving comes a unique opportunity to express ourselves. Research has shown surprisingly that the act of giving a gift is not just about the "other" person but reveals a lot of the person choosing the gift. It tells more of the identity of the person giving the gift while enabling the giver to feel generous and valued. In short, it is better to give than to receive: if you want to be happy, you’re better off spending on others than on yourself.
This presents a new playbook for each one of us. Let us take a pledge to open our minds and let generosity rise to the surface. The radical accommodations we have made this year will mean that gift exchanges too will take on a deeper meaning. I, for one pledge to unwrap a better version of myself - and will seek to give gifts that are enduring and are a lasting expression of care. I will try to be more empathetic to the needs of those around me and keep on giving of myself beyond the holiday season. I will try never to forget the lessons I have learned this crucial year that we are globally connected, we fall and rise together - so now let us support and strengthen together.
This is my last blog post of 2020 and my 31st blog since I launched during the start of the pandemic. My biggest gift of all has been You - my readers. I hope you have enjoyed this voyage as much as I have.
Thank you for your fellowship which nourishes my soul and your unseen but immense energy that motivates me every week. I look forward to more tales and topics in the New Year as I look to 2021 with a sense of Hope, Gratitude, and Affirmation.
We Are Stronger Together
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