Day 12 - ❦ One person’s treasure can be another person’s treasure.

Day 12

The Gift: A frosted Christmas platter.

We live next door to some of the greatest neighbors you could ever ask for. This was our first home purchase and I had no idea how important your neighbors could be - ours have been welcoming, helpful and respectful. The first weekend we were here all of our neighbors came over and introduced themselves, brought food and filled us in on the times we were to mow and not to mow our lawn (never on a Sunday). It is always nice to know what the rules are. Our house sits up on a hill and is bordered by a circular one-way street so while we have many neighbors (six houses) that directly lay adjacent to our property, we are set back enough that no one can see into our windows at night when our shades are open. It is really a very nice situation, nice neighbors, nice setting and great shade. The neighbors who lay directly to the south and who share the greatest amount of adjacent property have been especially fantastic, they have grown children, so they have always indulged our girls as grandparents will.

Several weeks ago, our neighbor, Karen came over and invited Shannon and her visiting friend to come over and pick through the remnants of her yard sale. I sent them over with some money and they had a blast. Karen would not allow them to pay and she gave them boxes which they filled with gifts for all of their family members. They brought their treasures home and spent the rest of the afternoon wrapping their selections. They were so excited and couldn't wait to start handing out all of their gifts. When they finished wrapping the items, they laid out the gifts in a long line in the living room and asked us to open them. They squealed with delight as we opened each package and I was overwhelmed at how thoughtfully they had picked the gifts. In the midst of the remnants of a yard sale, they had found something thoughtful for everyone in each of their families - it was very cool - inspirational.

I am telling you this story because in that long line of gifts, five had my name on them. As I opened each one, I was wowed and really enjoyed what I received - with the exception of one item - a frosted Christmas platter. When I unwrapped that gift, all I could think of was - this would be a perfect gift for my sister-in-law. Susie loves all holidays and really goes out of her way to elaborately decorate her home. She delights in decorating and inviting people over to enjoy her displays. The frosted Christmas platter screamed her name.

After we finished unwrapping all of the gifts and Shannon’s friend had packed off to her house with boxes of treasures for her family to open - I asked Shannon if we could talk about the platter. Her shining eyes narrowed and looked a little hurt as I asked her if I could give the platter to Susie. I could see her processing the request - Does this mean that Mom doesn't like this gift? Should I have thought about Susie and given her this gift? She sadly agreed that yes, Susie would really appreciate the platter and walked away. Even as I write this I have mixed feelings about that day, but I just knew that this gift was destined to go to Susie and I was uncomfortable giving it to her without talking to Shannon about it.

My doubts about whether or not this was the right thing to do were eliminated when I gave the platter to Susie. Shannon’s eyes shined proudly as I handed Susie the platter. I told Susie the story and Shannon smiled and re-enjoyed the experience of giving.

❦ One person’s treasure can be another person’s treasure.