While I actually loathe wrapping
presents, there is little I love more
than giving them. Selecting the
perfect gift is quite personal as is
what you enrobe it in. Somehow
that outer shell builds anticipation.
Is there anything more fun than
ripping into something beautiful
knowing that something even more
amazing awaits within? Delight is
the reason we bestow gifts on those
we love. And the resulting smile is
what gift giving is all about!
Between the two of us, we have
assembled quite a stock pile of
ribbons, boxes, and wrap. It's a
bit tough buying accoutrements
for wrapping here in Lewistown.
We lack even a simple Hallmark
shop. While our grocer carries the
basics they rarely meet our needs.
Therefore whenever or wherever
we see appealing paper goods, we
grab them like doomsday preppers
stock piling canned goods for an
impending nuclear holocaust!
A child of the depression, my
Mother recycled gift wrap and
ribbon. Little gave me greater
pleasure than watching her as
I tore into a beautifully wrapped
present. "What a waste" oozed
from Ethel's every pore! Frank's
uncle "B" took the art of frugality
a step further by placing our gifts
in empty cereal boxes. Either way,
it was always disconcerting when
one's gift was garbed in strangely
familiar wrapping. Re-gifting?
On the opposite end of the spectrum,
there was a time when I preferred
having someone else do the work.
When working above the store at
Marshall Field's, nothing was easier
than dropping off a pile of packages
downstairs at the gift wrap station.
There the patient ladies made my
presents appear even more special.
From professionally tied bows to
double stick tape, every box was
over the top. Sadly few stores still
offer this service, even for a fee!
Nowadays, an elegant box and
a satin ribbon seem to be enough.
What's as special as receiving a
blue box with a white ribbon from
Tiffany's? A silver box tied up in
pale lavender from Bergdorf's!
Every posh shop has it's signature
combination but Hermes' orange
and brown trump the rest. Why is
it that along the way we decided
that advertising a retailer is better
than taking the time to make our
gifts more personal with wrapping?
As we settle into our new home, I find
myself craving a dedicated space for
gift wrapping. There are many reasons
that just the fact that I'm thinking this
way terrifies me. Have I become some
Fairfield Country matron living in a
Palladian windowed McMansion? Or
worse, am I channeling my inner Candy
Spelling? Come to think of it, I'll stick
to digging through attic tubs and rolls.
After all one must remember that the
joy of gifting is all about the recipient.
NOT the giver!
