Is That What You REALLY Want For Christmas?
- Posted by glen on December 5th, 2006
I recently have been checking out the various “list†programs via Techcrunch that allow you to save items to your list, in hopes that your friends and family will buy what you want for a change. No more weird coffee mugs, no more sweaters that your 
dog wouldn’t wear. Now there will be no excuse why your loved ones can’t get you the perfect gift this year.
But if they are your friends and family, I really hope they don’t take your advice on what to get you this Christmas.
You see, the whole spirit of Christmas is giving. Arguably the second greatest feeling in the world is when someone has given you a truly thoughtful gift. (The only feeling better is being the person to give it.) When you make a Christmas list, you’re putting an obligation on the buyer to not use any creativity or thoughtfulness, but rather to purchase that Red Ryder BB Gun. But now the ‘gift†has become an obligation, no longer making it a true gift. Now it’s more like a payment. Like rent.
Knowing that someone cares enough to keep you in their thoughts in the busiest time of the year is something special. Don’t cheapen it by not allowing them the pleasure of giving the perfect gift, or by not allowing you to receive it.
December 5th, 2006 at 3:18 pm
[...] Wow. Sounds well worth the $25 for me. But you didn’t see that on my Christmas list [...]
December 6th, 2006 at 3:59 pm
I don’t let my kids give me presents (they range in age from 12 to 25). I was forced to give presents to people I didn’t like when I was a kid, so I don’t want them to feel any obligation. They *can* give me a present, but none are expected, so they usually don’t. They each have Amazon wish lists, but I don’t buy off of them. I try to buy them things that they’ll love that they *haven’t* asked for. Their dad buys off the lists because he doesn’t have as much imagination, so it generally works out well.
December 12th, 2006 at 10:44 am
[...] The true meaning of a gift is something that is given, as an act of thoughtfulness or love. There is no love involved in buying something off of a list. That’s called grocery shopping. [...]
December 14th, 2006 at 1:16 pm
[...] I, too, am guilty of this kind of holiday desperation maneuver.  Where do we draw the line? What is proper Christmas gifting etiquette?  I like LifeDev’s recent musings.    [...]
December 20th, 2006 at 3:15 pm
[...] I love the idea for ChangingThePresent.com. Instead of an infomercial with some well-dressed British man standing around 50 starving African children making you feel terrible because you’d rather let them starve than eat out, you have a site that lets you pick what type of organization you’d like to help, based on your own preferences. Instead of feeling guilty, you feel great about giving (and without being pushed). Isn’t that what giving is supposed to be anyway? [...]
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