Things To Remember

It's Not The Thought That Counts.

Did I say that right? Oh no, it's not the thought that counts, it is the thought that counts. Remember that during the gift giving season, and a Merry Christmas to you. Truly, this is something any well raised person knows. It is really only the act of giving the gift, not what you give. I learned this lesson by the age of 10. Most people know this.

It was a difficult lesson to learn. I still feel shame over my actions to this day. It was my 10th Birthday party and one of my mom's good friends bought me a Halloween costume for my birthday which was in October that year. I actually move the date around a lot. Sometimes I skip it altogether. It just depends on when I feel the need to be honored and have people give me presents, but mostly I stick to October.

So there I was wearing a red velvet dress, one of my grandmother's broaches, knee high socks, and my mousey brown hair cut in the famous Dorothy Hamil style, when I came upon the box with the costume in it, much to my dismay the plastic mask was that of some sort of monster or ghoul, and not the princess that I would have usually chosen. I was very disappointed and all I could think of was having to graciously wear a boyish monster costume, when what I wanted to be was a pretty blonde haired princess.

Being the bratty child I was, I looked at my mother, held up the costume and made the most horrendous yuck face I could muster. Of course, I didn't realize that the person who gave me the costume was standing right next to her and could see I did not like it. She later told me I could return it and get something different if I wanted to. Since I was raised well, I knew the polite thing to do would be to lie and say, "No, I love it!" And that is what I did, but in the back of my mind, I knew my mom would take me to buy a different costume. And we did, but my mom let me know right then and there that the sort of behavior I displayed at my birthday party was rather rude, and that is when I heard it, "It's not the gift, but the thought that counts!"

Since I was feeling so guilty and embarrassed for my behavior, the lesson stuck with me. I never meant for the lady to know I didn't like the costume, I knew that was considered rude of me. I was embarrassed that she saw me make that face. I never forgot the lesson.

With that in mind, let me say this, it is really the thought that counts, sometimes the thought says a lot.

Today I received a Christmas gift from my employer, it was a gift card. I thought the gesture was nice, and was happy for it. I thanked my boss, and told her I appreciated the gift. It was not an enormous amount of money, but it is enough to buy something. They didn't have to give me anything.

Tonight I told my sister, "I got a Christmas gift card from work," and I told her how much it was. She said, "I got my Christmas present from work too, and it wasn't any gift card, it was a little bitty bottle of some off brand shower gel, a miniaturized bath poof, and a company pen, I think they got the gel and bath poof at the Dollartree Store, and the pen was broken when I took it out of the package." And I'm not kidding you, I laughed my butt off. I'm sorry, but it was so funny how she described how she thought the pen was nice until she took it out of the wrapper and the thing just fell apart. We were raised by the same mother, I knew she was probably trying to think of a way to say, well it's the thought that counts.

What is the thought that counts here? Am I being contradictory when I say that the $2.50 they spent on the Christmas gifts for each employee was not money well spent? Personally for my money I would have bought a beautifully decorated card and wrote a genuine message of kindness in there. I mean really, that gift says a lot. A whole lot. I honestly don't know what else to say. I'm conflicted I've been told my whole life it is the thought that counts, and it still does, sometimes the thought just doesn't say much that's all.