Our personal email-box, this weekend and this morning was filled this with pages of stuff on sale, one day deals, etc...The last thing we want in our home is more stuff. We are regularly combing through our closets and cupboards to give away stuff that clutters our life.
We do like giving gifts, and like us the majority of friends do not want stuff on Christmas day or Hanukkah or whatever holiday is dear to them. We recently asked our 32 year old niece what she wanted, and her answer was " I have everything I need, I just want your love and friendship!"
Our solution for the holiday gifts is giving in the form of experiences. Rather than add a pile of stuff to unwrap from the mound of gifts under the tree, we would take the youngsters in our family on experiences as a gift. For instance we went ice skating, skiing, the movies, the theatre, the ballet, the opera, or anything else they wanted to experience.
With those out of town, we still give an experiential gift. If they are wine lovers or foodies, we pick a special bottle of wine for them or a special cheese for them to send. Pictured above is a perfect gift for wine lovers in our sphere. This wine ranked #27 on the Wine Spectator list.
Or, we will send them tickets to a performance they want to see with great seats! Or enroll them for an art class or cooking class. We practice what we preach. Our holiday gift to ourselves is a ski trip!
One year we flew my mother to Las Vegas for a performance. Our friends were managing Peggy Lee at the time, and she was opening for George Burns. My mother loved Peggy Lee, and she spent a bit of time with her backstage...and she loved meeting George Burns and friends like Sammy Davis Junior...She talked about this moment for years!
The gift of spending time is precious to us more so than any high priced item (stuff). It is the experience that matters most, everything else pales by comparison.
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