We enjoyed a magical day with my ex in-laws yesterday celebrating her 80th birthday and their 60 years of marriage. Amazing!
Incoming Gifts
This was the first time we had seen relatives since Christmas and the start of this new 'non consumerism' journey. We hadn't yet shared our journey with them. They had a gift for me for my birthday... a serving platter. What now?
It was beautiful (tick) and replaced the one we tossed out that had chips on the corners (tick). So I guess in a way it is welcomed, but did we really need it? (the jury is out) Probably not. None the less it is in the cupboard and we will see if we reach for it.
Outgoing Gifts
We, in turn, took gifts for their 60th wedding anniversary and her 80th birthday. We decided on flowers and a bottle of Moet... and a small glass diamond (in an old gift box we had lying around) signifying 60 years of marriage. When the celebration occurred we openly shared our hearts with them in the form of the spoken word (no on an expensive, environmentally irresponsible, store purchased card.) It was so warmly received and I am sure connected more to their hearts than the alternative.
What I loved was the amount of love that Steve (ex hubby) and his sister went to for their celebrations. Lisa organised a gorgeous cake and a letter from the queen, our Prime Minister, the Governor General, their local MP and another MP. Amazing and truly thoughtful gifts from the heart.
Steve organised champagne, made an awesome fruit platter and bought his mum a book. Very thoughtful and loving.
All in all, the day was full of love.... it was great!
Cheers from Deb (tears of appreciation in her eyes)
What came in - 1 item
Birthday present for me - the platter
What went out - 2 items
Two small nic-naks
INSIGHTS
(1) The spoken word is so powerful, especially from the heart
(2) There are many gifts that mean so much, that costs nothing (financially, environmentally, emotionally)
(3) Their is a sense of guilt from not 'gifting' in the traditional way - boy this really shines a light on the power of the media and the consumer calendar.
TOTAL: OUT - 770 IN - 67
TOTAL CASH sales from gone-ski items = $48
It was my birthday today. The rain insisted we cancel the beach dinner party we had planned... and we didn't fancy organising the house for 20+ guests for dinner and drinks, so we just called it off in the spirit of 'ease and grace'.
This enabled me to open up to a new day of opportunities to celebrate.
The Gift of Time
I had the day off work, Sammi was on her last day of school holidays (starting high school tomorrow), Jerry had to go into the office and so Sammi and I decided to just chill out at home, letting the day unfold on it's own.
A Facebook message from a friend came in suggesting a café catchup for lunch. Perfect!! She had a place in mind with soul-full food that she had heard was great.
The food was spectacular, the ambiance was terrible; on a foot-path, on a main road, on a damp, rainy day... but it was the best lunch ever!
We shared more of ourselves in that three hours than we had had the chance to since meeting years ago. We laughed, cried, shared insights and our hearts. Most of all, we shared compassion and understanding for the really tough journey we had been on.
My heart just melted.
Caroline bought us lunch as a gift... but we both knew the real gift was the moments shared.
Juicy conversation
Next a text arrived from my beautiful friend Maree... yay! We met at a café and enjoyed a fresh juice while we caught up. It was just perfect. Another gift of time and connection.
Dinner and PRESENTS!!
We got home in time to greet Jerry home from work. We settled in for the night creating a simple dinner of vegetarian, make it yourself, wraps!! My favourite 'easy' meal. Steve (Ex hubby) joined us.
The celebrations began...and out came the presents. OH NO!!!
Steve proudly presented his WRAPPED bottles of wine and a CARD. We laughed. He was so proud of his purchase because it was something we could use, that would not clutter. It then dawned on him that the wrapping and card were the joke.
Sammi then presented her gift in the store bag... some earrings...yay! I then held her hand and said... now give me your card from your heart. She looked deep into my eyes and shared her feelings with me... it was gorgeous!
Now that's a heart-card.
Jerry then gave me my second present of the day (the first was a beautiful silver and turquoise pendant), a mobile charging unit.... yippee!! I loved it. I always steal his when out and about. It holds enough charge for 5 iPhones. Oh yeah!!
Oh, and it was in an old gift box (recycled). I loved that he did that!
He then spoke his heart-card... gorgeous!
But wait there's more...
Then he comes back into the room with another present...WTF!! Lucky me. It was in the store wrapping (yay) and was from IKOU - the organic goodies I buy. Yay...no clutter. It had a candle, some massage oil and a loufa.
We had a great night... relaxed, loving and full.
What went out - 11 items
I went through my belts drawer and put 11 in the donation box.
What came in - 5 items
My turquoise necklace, the loufa, the bag the IKOU goodies came in, the charging pack, and the earrings.
.
INSIGHTS
(1) Moments are the greatest gift of all
(2) When I open up to connection... the world connects
TOTAL: OUT - 586 IN - 48
On the way to work we discussed how to deliver the gift (a family photo shoot with Jerry) to our friend for his birthday. Do we buy a card and write in the card?
CONSUMER ALERT!!
It was a tough decision because we wanted to convey our hearts and 'give' him something. What a trap. There is no need to present someone with a written birthday wish... when a heart felt exchange in person or over the phone is just as powerful, if not more so. Buying a card doesn't add any value.
Think about it... what do you do with old birthday cards?
So that's what we did. We shared dinner, which was whole food made with loads of love. We shared fine wine. We shared stories. But most of all we shared our hearts and experienced a connection that had been once lost to the noise of life.
Over fresh fruit and a sticky date cake to die for, we shared the gift with our friend. He (and his gorgeous family) loved the idea. And we explained the reason for no card and present. They are followers of this blog and were so happy to hear that we had made that choice consciously.
There are gazillion ways to gift someone. Be creative!
What went out - 4 items
One pair of shoes left the building today. I was very brave...LOL. Plus 3 empty plastic water bottles that have been sitting on the window sill for months.
What came in - 0 items
Nothing at all. Although we did take home some food from dinner in a Tupperware container which we will return this weekend. Does this count? Need your feedback please.
INSIGHTS
(1) More joy is experienced by gifts of the heart than any purchase on the menu.
(2) Time WITH and being present with friends is very precious
TOTAL: OUT - 320 IN - 9
