Sunday Scribblings: MP's Theory Of Gift Giving

Well the holidays are upon us, it seems like only yesterday it was 102 degree heat (at least here in the LV), where does the time go?

One of the elements that exists about the holidays, and this is true regardless of which holiday you're celebrating, holidays involve gift giving. For some people the very idea of having to figure out what gift to give is enough to inspire hives; for others the thought of the gifts they'll be receiving has the same effect. Competing with loved ones or friends to see who can give the better gift is one of the least fun things about a holiday.

I'm here to tell you that if you employ my theory of gift giving and receiving, things will go a lot more smoothly with no competition involved.

This theory came into being one year while talking to my friend Tricia* who was lamenting the fact that her husband John just didn't "get her" when it came to gift giving. "He gives me gifts that just seem like they're for someone else", she held up a bright pink skirt as a means of illustration. Tricia is not a pink girl, she has worn nothing but black for the past 15 years, and a bright pink skirt? Who was that skirt for?

I started thinking about the many times I'd received those types of gifts, not tacky gifts, perfectly nice presents that clearly were meant for someone else, items not my taste, style, just not me and the thought occurred to me that I was actually care taking these things until the real owners came along.

Now, my theory is different from the what you know as re-gifting. In re-gifting, you get a gift that may be a bit funky, or you get two of something and you try to figure out who you can pass that item off to. In the MP theory, you may have to hold onto that item for awhile, you may not even know the person it belongs to-yet. It is almost a guarantee that at some point the person that item belongs to will show up in your environment and you can give them the gift you've been holding for them. I have had that experience many times.

One of the best things about MP's theory of gift giving is that it is a gift in itself. When I relate my theory to someone and they take it as their own it frees them; frees them from disappointment when they get that seemingly strange present; or they give one.

*names changed

This post was done as part of the Sunday Scribblings