The Best Gift Ever

“God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.”

Voltaire

Family Gathering

Recently, at a family Christmas gathering I sat watching as the children opened their gifts.  As I sat there many memories of years past came flooding in.  As my granddaughter opened one of her gifts she yelled “it’s my most favorite gift ever”.  Then I heard my niece say “Oh man this is the best gift ever”.  As each gift was opened someone would say “oh thank you this is the best gift ever” which made me think.  What was the best gift I ever received?  What was the best gift I ever gave?

Over the years there have been many gifts that were the best ever.  I remember the Christmas morning I opened a Chemistry set with a microscope – I was ten years old.  At the time it was the best gift ever.  When I was twelve years old I received my first telescope which I still have – at the time it was the best gift ever.  Then when I turned eighteen I received a twelve string guitar which at the time was the best gift ever.  There have been many gifts over the years but have they all really been the best gifts ever?

The Christmas Holiday is a time for giving.  Each year we spend time shopping for those thoughtful gifts for family, friends and colleagues.  It’s also a time that many reflect on the past remembering the good moments and the bad.  Giving a gift demonstrates affection for the people you love and care about.  In the moment, many gifts are the best gift ever but over time fade which made me think even more about what was the best gift I ever received.  What gift do I still have that I still consider to be the best gift ever?

The Best Gift Received

The best gift I ever received was from my parents on the day I was born.  They gave me the gift of life.  As the saying goes it’s the gift that keeps giving.  Without this gift I would not be here today.  It’s a gift I never want to return, give up or re-gift.  Each passing day that I wake renews the gift my parents gave me so many years ago.  Certainly, it is an abstract way to think about a gift but consider all the gifts you have ever received.  What’s the one gift you still have that was given to you with love, caring and affection?  Each morning you wake up; think about how blessed you are to have received such an unselfish gift.  After I was born my parents gave that same gift five more times.  What makes this gift so special is not the fact that I am here today but knowing that my parent’s gift continues to this day as a labor of love for me, my brother and four sisters.

The Best Gift Given

The best gift I ever gave was the gift my wife and I gave to the world when each of our children was born.  Each is special and unique in many ways.  Children are God’s gift.  Bringing children into the world is our gift to God.  The gift I gave my children and the gift my parents gave me is not a gift that guaranteed fame and fortune rather it was a gift that guaranteed a life of being loved regardless.

Still not sure what was the best gift you ever received?  Look back over your life.  Consider what gift was given to you through a natural expression of love that you still have and each day that gift is renewed.  We live in a society that is obsessed with money and material things which makes it easy to lose sight of gifts we receive that are truly special.  In the end it really is the simplest things in life which have the greatest impact that we fail to recognize.  Receiving gifts makes me feel good inside but the best gift ever was the gift of life my parents gave me when I was born.