As the holiday season approaches our thoughts turn to our families and loved ones, as well as our traditions. This season also brings travel coordinating, decorating, cooking plans and gift giving lists. The streets and shops being to get busy with the hustle and bustle of all these preparations.
Before getting too swept away by the growing shopping lists, it is good to pause and reflect on the reasons for gift giving, tradition, and possibly our own rituals when giving presents.
Establishing Your Gift Giving Ritual
Maybe you weren’t brought up in a culture or family that had gift giving rituals, or maybe those traditions don’t resinate with you, or maybe you love the traditions you inherited but you want to bring even more awareness to how you gift. No matter your reason, establishing your own gift giving rituals can be rewarding and fun!
We all know the saying “it’s the thought that counts” so why not continue to add thought to your present practice?
Setting an Intention
Do you run around the only store that is open at midnight randomly grabbing items off the shelves and show up to your holiday party with all your gifts in the paper and plastic bags from the store you got them? It’s ok to admit we have all done this a time or two. But it doesn’t usually have the same satisfaction as gift giving that has intention behind it. Setting an intention is a wonderful ritual to establish.
It can be as simple as pausing this think about the things you cherish most in the person who you will be giving a gift to. Then setting the intention to find, buy, or make something that expresses those feelings. Taking it a little deeper, you can write down all of those thoughts and put that note in with the gift. The receiver may enjoy the gift but knowing the intention behind it will fill them with love.
Presentation
What does your gift wrapping communicate? Taking that extra bit of time to attentively wrap can bring your gift giving to a new level. Plus the presentation can be a really fun part of your ritual! Think out side the box – figuratively and literally.
No need to add more paper waste or money into the equation either. Cut open a brown paper bag, draw doodles or write messages on the blank side then use it to wrap your gift. A great wrapping idea for gifts to grandparents is by using your children’s drawings from through out the year. Giving something really big? Instead of wrapping paper try draping it with a sheet that you have covered in bows or written on with fabric pens. Or maybe the gift isn’t wrapped at all, but beautifully set out someplace special surrounded by flowers.
Whatever you do, the receiver is sure to feel that extra bit of love and care you express through your creative presentation.
Gifting Appreciation
Gifts don’t always have to be something you buy. Often they can be something you do. Another way to establish a ritual behind your gift giving is to focus on expressing your appreciation.
How can you show a person in your life how grateful you are for them? Where can you help them with something they can’t do themselves or by stepping in to do the things they dislike doing? Perhaps you know your roommate hates doing the dishes. For their gift this season why not do that dreaded chore for them? You could write them a card with something silly like:
I know one of your greatest wishes
is to never have to do the dishes.
So, this year instead of a holiday treat
my gift comes after we eat.
To show how much I love you,
for the next month, you won’t have a single dish to do.
Often a gift of action is the greatest way for recipients to feel how much you really love and appreciate them.
Gift Giving Lists
Sometimes an overload in choices can lead to stressful shopping instead of a thoughtful mindset. And we all want to be mindful with our gift giving. To help you find the best gifts for your loved one’s this season, The Alchemist’s Kitchen has created two incredible gift guides for this season.
The Alchemist’s Kitchen Staff Picks provides you with all our teams’ favorite products!
We have also created our Intentional Gift Guide. This guide will help you find the best products by intention from finding calm to making love to strengthening your immune system.
Have a happy and mindful gifting season of gratitude!