Christmas time for gifts stores don’t sell
In the holiday classic fable, "The Gift of the Magi," author O. Henry reminds us what happens when a married couple fails to communicate.
The tale of a hapless, under-achieving husband who sells his only valuable possession, a watch, to purchase a beautiful comb for his wife who that same day made a desperate decision to cut and sell her tresses in order to buy him a watch fob explains why gift certificates have become so popular.
Yet the irony here is not the merchandising miscue.
The heart of this story and the trademark O. Henry surprise ending is their blunders didn’t matter. The gift was the giving.
For Christians, giving is the reason for the season. At its core, Christmas celebrates the belief God gave humans the gift of his only Son, sent to redeem us and, basically, teach us how to behave.
Too often, that message of giving as opposed to getting is lost amid the merchandising, advertising and packaging that accompanies the holiday. Christmas has evolved into an excuse for rampant consumerism and self-indulgence. No one escapes.
Children are targeted and trapped by ads promoting the "hottest" toy of the season. Their pleas are heard by makeshift Santas and parents who, seeking to make their children happy, undertake what amounts to a desperate search for the most advertised toys of the season.
But isn’t that giving?
No one can deny the absolute joy in a child’s eyes upon finding that sought-after gift under the tree on Christmas morning. And that reaction is what parents truly seek when they line up at 6 a.m. outside a store, hoping to be the first to find items that are in short supply.
But there’s more than one way to put a gleam in a loved one’s eyes, and there are many gifts money can’t buy.
So this year, after the malls are closed and the Christmas wrapping is bundled for recycling, let’s try giving our children, our friends and our family something that can’t be found in a store or an e-mall. Let’s give of ourselves.
Neither time nor kindness nor joy comes in a gift certificate.