The Lost Art of Gift Giving
Thursday, March 20, 2008
What happened to the days when you were a child and gave those amazingly creative, heartfelt gifts to your parents, grandparents, friends, teachers. Remember? You couldn’t wait to see their faces light up, when you showed your dad the smiley face clay coaster you made or when you handed your mom the flowers you picked from the front yard? They were gifts given with genuine love, thought and, often, for no special reason. What happened to those days? Somehow as we grew up, the concept of gift giving got lost.
Dr. Gary Chapman, who authored The Five Love Languages describes gift giving as a fundamental expression of love that transcends all cultures.
Gifts are visual symbols of love. Something you can hold in your hand and say, “Look, he was thinking of me,” or, “She remembered me.” You must be thinking of someone to give a gift. The gift itself is a symbol of that thought. Cost is not the important part. It’s that you thought of someone, the thought expressed by actually getting and giving the gift is the expression of love.
At Pure Light we couldn’t agree more. And we’d like to help rekindle the idea of gifts from the heart. One path to this lost ritual is candlemaking. It’s a great way to show someone you care and a unique way to express the light they bring to your life. Carefully choosing colors, shapes, design elements and scents that remind you of someone is a gift anyone is sure to treasure. Bringing someone with you to make a candle is also a gesture from the heart—an invitation to spend quality time together while creating art and memories.
Other ways we hope we can help you express your love and thought is with the gift items we offer from lands near and far. Unique finds like a stone temple lantern from Bali for a gardener friend, or flowering tea blossoms for that someone who loves their herbal treats, or a spirit necklace for a troubled soul. We always have people stop in Pure Light and say what unusual gifts we offer. That’s exactly what we love to hear.
There’s also the gift from the heart of having a gathering or ceremony for someone’s birthday, an anniversary, a soon-to-be bride or a mother to be. These gatherings are both celebratory and sincere and express your best intentions for the guest of honor.
Gift giving. Let’s bring it back. Let’s celebrate the special people in our lives once more.
Next entry: Summer of Love - 14 Ways to Grow the Soul this Summer
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