I recently sent this article to some of my co-workers and family and it has caused quite storm! I enjoy a little controversy, so I’m going to unleash this article on my blog. The article was written by Liz Pulliam Weston, a personal finance columnist. Her article can be found on MSN Money: Gift cards are not gifts.
I considered this article to be very thought provoking. The two main thrusts of the article are: 1) The art of gift-giving is quickly devolving into an entirely commercial exchange. 2) A gift card says nothing about the personality of the recipient — but it says lots about the giver. She closes with some practical advice to follow if you are going to buy a gift card.
One of my co-workers (I’ll call him Reggie) read the FIRST FEW paragraphs of the article and then shot back saying,
“This lady sounds like an idealist!!!! Who in the World has time to know that much about everybody???? I can’t answer all of those question about my wife??!!?!!!?!!!! I’ve only known her for 40 years but she has changed over time (numerous times) and so has her interests. So you see, these items this lady has pointed out are dynamic, always changing…….In conclusion, she is obviously out of touch or only knows 2 people. Ahahahahahahahah Thanks for sharing.”
For those of you who don’t know Reggie, he’s very opinionated! I also know that he’s a strong Christian too. So I didn’t have any problem bringing religion into the mix. My reply was:
“She is far from being an idealist. The point that she’s making is that people have lost the art of gift giving. The gift that is given often speaks more about the giver than the recipient. Not to make this a religious thing (but I am), but what does the gift of Jesus Christ speak about the nature of God? It’s speaks of God’s love, his desire to redeem the earth, he desire to dwell among us, his desire to heal, his desire to conquer sin and death, his desire right every wrong, and his desire to establish his rule and reign on earth as it is in heaven. Thank God He didn’t give us a gift card.”
So what do YOU think?
Sunday, 9. December 2007
It is sad. I know people who have virtually no traditions such as gift giving, Christmas trees, or spending time together. Our culture has gotten so selfish that we would rather spend less time thinking about others and more time (and money) on ourselves. I, myself, have always enjoyed getting gifts instead of money. It shows that people truly care.
PS Also, if someone’s love language is “gifts” please make sure that you don’t get them a gift card.