I like gifts. I like getting them, but I like giving them even more. I love seeing sparkling eyes and hearing, “This is the best gift EVER! Thank you!” But my favorite gifts are those I’ve given anonymously.
It all started with a gift my husband and I received on December 23, 1976. We were young, had two preschool children, and were having a tough time. We had moved home to St. Paul, Minn., from out of state with $13 in our checking account. We knew Christmas would be simple and the months ahead would be lean. When the wind picked up and caught the storm door, Steve reached outside to latch it and discovered a plain white envelope taped just above the handle. We opened the envelope and discovered three $100 bills. Nothing more. No note. No “Merry Christmas from a friend.” Just an astonishing gift for two anxious young people.
We never discovered who gave us that incredible gift, worth about $1,500 today. That gift, though, contained much more than money, for it brought us hope, joy, and a reminder that someone cared deeply about us. It also taught us an important lesson in gift giving: the gift IS in the giving. Over the years, we have delighted in passing on similar hope-filled gifts to friends and neighbors who were experiencing tough times.
In this holiday season, let’s be creative and expansive about our gift-giving. Let’s share smiles, warm greetings, much-needed food, or even what a friend called “giving the gift of space” on the highway … or on our narrow B-W streets. Happy Holidays!
Myrna Sheie is this newsletter’s copy editor. She’s a former English teacher and church body executive. Now happily retired to NE Portland, she loves finding new walking routes, hanging out with her 11-year-old twin grandsons, and keeping the Portland Water Bureau solvent by obsessively watering her gardens.