Monday, December 25, 2017

Gifting

O. Henry’s short story, ‘The Gift of the Magi’ is about a young couple dealing with the test of buying secret Christmas gifts for each other with very little money. The wife sells her long tresses to a hairdresser to buy a chain for her husband’s pocket watch. Her husband sells his watch to buy a set of combs for his wife’s lovely hair.

The writer ends the story saying, ‘… two foolish children who most unwisely sacrificed for each other the greatest treasures... let it be said that of all who give gifts these two were the wisest. O all who give and receive gifts, such as they are wisest… They are the magi.’


The greatest gifts are the ones you treasure the most. They are things that are valuable to you yet you don’t mind giving them up for getting gifts for the ones you love. And the greatest gifting is when we can give up our favourite things so that we can give others what they would be happy to have.

Gifting is not just about the price of the gift. It is about the price that the giver is ready to pay. And the greatest price to pay is to selflessly lose what is valuable to you. The couple in the story are left with gifts that neither can use, but they realize how far they are willing to go to show their love for each other.

Gifting can be plain sharing where we share the surplus that we possess. But gifting gets lofty when we are ready to forgo, our smaller or greater treasures, so that we are able to arrange gifts for others. These are not mere sacrifices but choices that reflect real love. And such conscious costs make for the greatest of gifting!

Gifting gets greater when valuables we let go
To make possible for our true love to show!


~ Pravin Sabnis

No comments: