TO THE MALL!

forfeit any hope of finding the so dearly desired item under the tree come holy night. A very holistic exercise in teamwork, negotiation and cooperation would ensue. As well as the occasional, and silent, tug-of-war, of course.

If our parents had to try and pick the one item we wanted most on our list, parents today are faced with the much harder task of finding what their children could possibly need. They have so much already. And isn’t last year’s so desperately wishedfor toy gathering dust in a corner of the playroom? It would seem to me that something is inherently wrong with the notion of giving for the sake of giving, and of receiving for the sake of receiving, too, for that matter.

The three wise men, who presumably followed a star more than 2,000 years ago, to present gold, frankincense and myrrh to a baby in a manger, would be quite surprised to see what has become of the tradition they established.

Sadly, the act of offering has fallen victim to greed and peer pressure. If “everybody” is getting a certain gadget this year, surely our children would need to have it too, right? Wrong! I remember my kids claiming that they would need therapy later in life if we deprived them of a certain electronic toy. And, I remember replying that we were saving for the said therapy by not spending the money on this specific item. Somehow, years later, my husband and I have yet to identify the need for such medical intervention in our now grown up children.

The three previously mentioned magi originally responsible for the discombobulation we find ourselves in these days didn’t expect to participate in a great gift exchange. They came baring gifts, expecting nothing in return. They brought precious wares as a sign of appreciation to someone who had nothing to offer them.

We are no magi, we are no kings, but surely we are wise men and women. Therefore, at the risk of stating the obvious, I believe we need to reevaluate our gift-giving practice.

Let’s make presents for the ones we love and appreciate: our children, spouses, parents and friends. But, let’s keep a budget for those who have nothing to offer us in return: the orphans, the homeless, the challenged, the sick and the forgotten. And, animal shelters, too.