The act of gifting. . . .

After many years of shopping for and wrapping presents, the "magic" of presenting a specially selected gift and watching the recipient unwrap it is sort of gone. We have an option today of giving gift cards.  However, I still don't "like" to use gift cards though I find I do it more and more these days.

I find that for the young adult and teens and on my shopping list and those for  whom it is more difficult for me to make a selection, the gift card is the answer. In the past it would have been a "check." But the selection of a specific gift card does say to the recipient, "Hey, I know this is one of your favorite places to shop (or eat). Go have some fun."

The idea behind the giving of gifts is to simply say to the person to whom you are presenting your gift, "I think you are special to me and I want to show you that you are special."  The idea is not simply to bestow a large gift or a fancy gift.  Gifting is about sharing your feelings.  When it is not done with the feeling that you really want to do something for the person to whom you are giving a gift, the handover becomes simply a task and a non-meaningful act of obligation. 

Gifting is not an obligation, it is a sharing of the heart.