Mom was a gift giver. Now, I’m going to tell you right off the bat that good gift givers are terrible, terrible gift receivers. Sorry Mom, but true. 😊 Tanya, Daddy and I always agonized over gifts for Mom. Birthday and Christmas gifts were always challenging. It seemed that no matter what we got for Mom, no matter how thoughtful we were being, we always got the “Oh, that’s nice.” We’re like, what do you means that’s nice — it’s wonderful! It didn’t matter how much we spent or how personal (that was big for Mom) the gift, or how excited we were that it was just the right gift, our gifts always seemed to fall flat. We always took that personally, you know, like we just couldn’t please her. Maybe that was true, but in hindsight, I don’t think so. Those folks out there who are the best gift givers are always the worst gift receivers, not because you can’t please them, I don’t think that’s it at all, but because they are completely selfless. They would rather do the giving than the receiving and therefore, receiving makes them feel uncomfortable and all they can say is “Oh, that’s nice.” Mom always wanted to be the gift giver never the gift receiver.
Looking back now, I realize that Mom’s greatest gifts were gifts literally from her heart. She loved this Marine enough to quit high school in her senior year and move to Camp Lejeune, North Caroline, at the age of 17, much to my grandparents’ dismay. She gave the gift of love to Tanya and I and although I think they’re all stories, I hear I tested that love quite often. She loved Jeff and Tony as her own, unconditionally. There isn’t a word to explain Mom’s love for her grandchildren and greatgrandchildren. It was simply too big. Mom’s gift of love for Aunt Sandi and Uncle Harry and all her nieces and nephews was unmeasured. Mom adored her family.
Mom’s gift giving spread to all those around her, from the words she spoke, to the cards she sent, to the love she gave. Mom’s gifts were always lavish and generous. Mom would spend hours searching for just the right gift and would get so frustrated, and yes, angry, when she didn’t find the perfect gift. She hated giving cash or gift cards. We loved it. But, Mom didn’t think enough thought had gone into the person if that was the gift – she thought that was the easy way out. We liked cash!
Mom’s greatest achievement in life was being a nurse. It surpassed everything else. It was another gift giving opportunity for her. She started college fulltime when I did. Mom finished, I didn’t. Although Mom finished 3rd in her class at Shepherd, Mom was voted by the class to be the speaker at the pinning ceremony by her classmates. They too had been recipients of her generous gift giving — cheerleading, encouragement and love.
Mom went on to become nurse manager of OB at City Hospital where she again gave lavish gifts. Some of those gifts are still turning up. Over the weekend, – – one of the nurses Olivia works with just found a note of encouragement in her locker from 1993 from Mom – it was a treasured gift. There are nurses out there today because Mom gave the generous gift of books, classes, and most importantly, encouragement.
From the small happy day gifts she gave, a hug, a treat for your dog, a notecard of encouragement, to books, to unconditional love, to gift cards, Mom was a generous gift giver.
Mom was one of the most generous gift givers I knew. It wasn’t the kind of generosity you’d expect. She did not flaunt it, she received no recognition for it. In fact, if she knew I wrote about it I’d be getting the look – you know the one I mean – the one only Mom could give. When I think back over her life, I see time and time again her giving, her sharing, her unselfishness, her generosity, her gifts. They are beautiful nuggets of comfort.
But, let me tell you about the greatest, most generous gift Mom ever gave us – she introduced us to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. That is the gift she gave her family and those she came into contact with — the gift of Hope. There were times we didn’t really want to open that gift and we did our share of eye rolling at it, and that’s where Mom’s gift of unconditional love came in. But, when we finally unwrapped that most precious gift, it was priceless – Mom introduced us to the Ultimate Gift through the Ultimate Gift Giver, Jesus Christ. The gift of Eternity.
Not only did Mom give us the gift of the Gospel, she gave us the gift of peace. We know that we are now only separated for a time not for an eternity. That’s the second greatest gift you can give to someone. Only when you know where someone will spend eternity can you truly say — It is well – It is well, with my Soul, and it is.
So we celebrate a beginning, not an end. We have all been recipients of Mom’s generous gift giving. Mom would be honored if we lavished those gifts on everyone we met, a word of encouragement, a hug, a bone for Rover, the gift of Jesus Christ – Eternity. Please go be gift givers. Give the most generous greatest gift from the Ultimate Gift Giver, Jesus Christ. Give the gift of Eternity to someone else by introducing them to Jesus so it too can be well with your Soul.