We long ago quit buying Christmas gifts for extended family -- aunts and uncles. All the adults buy presents for the nieces and nephews only. It was a good decision. I don't need more Christmas themed hand towels or socks or jewelry I wouldn't wear even if I was drunk.
My two oldest nephews are out of college and working -- one selling condos in the warm southwest U.S. and the other pitching for the Phillies (or whatever minor league level they decide to send him to -- he's been up and down like a ping-pong ball.)
My brother-in-law (not their father) asked me: When do we stop getting them presents? We don't buy for adults, and they are adults, right?
No. Afraid not. My rule is when they get married and have kids of their own -- then they are adults. Of course, his rule could be different. I'm not telling him what his rule ought to be. But to me they will always be Timmy and Mikey and even though it's not as much fun handing over money to them at Christmas as it was searching for the perfect He-Man or Skeletor action figure, I still love to give them something.
Because you never know. Someday when I need people to pay for my cushy apartment at the assisted living center, my nephews may remember those crisp $50 bills and chip in. plan ahead, that's my motto.
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1 comment:
Well.....
It'll be interesting to see how long it takes you to find my comment. July?
In the first place, once you start giving gifts to someone it looks bad when you quit. So you can never ever stop. If there is a solution it is name drawings. Family name drawings are kind of the same thing to giving as armistices are to wars. Our family started drawing names mainly because the kids got tired of buying Mom and Dad presents. But Mom and Dad kept on buying anyway, which they asked us if we would do before we drew. Kids are smart these days.
We lost big time on that one.
Good luck with that assisted living dream of yours!
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