In the overconnected digital age, it’s hard not to feel sad. Comparison, competition, jealousy, and FOMO are emotions we all feel from time to time, no matter how hard it is to accept them. It is a privilege to be able to add joy and share the feeling of happiness with your loved ones.
Gift-giving as a love language is often limited to occasions like birthdays. But it can be simple to give your friends and family a little joy, even without a reason! I started taking flowers for my friends when we go out this year on a whim and it’s a tradition I hope we never lose touch with. Their smiles are priceless and the memories are etched in our hearts forever. I recently got a single flower for a friend for a cafe date and she told me she had never gotten flowers before! She put it in a little pot and has been maintaining it like a little plant making the gesture a lasting one.
My best friends sent me flowers on Eid because I didn’t find the time to go out and get them for my home. Graduations, milestones and birthdays – we try to never miss a chance for a little gift. And it’s more often than not very minimal but it’s always the effort that counts. Someone wanted to make you smile on a special day or just like that.
The memories we make, the ones we choose to cherish and the ones we wish never leave our minds, they’re all about our love and gratitude for each other. I sent flowers to my school friend when she graduated and she pasted them in her journal after they had dried. It made my heart swell that my little gesture was so special for her that she felt the need to protect it. Even my allergic-to-pollen friend graciously accepted a bouquet on her birthday while sniffling during the photo session. That’s the power of small gifts. Not to mention getting your favourite books for your fellow book lovers.
My mother recently started re-reading the classic Agatha Christie novels that she read as a teenager. I look for them in every bookstore I find myself in and she’s equally elated every time she gets one as if it were a surprise. Following the trend, I added a few flowers to her birthday books. Gifts that are easy and take less effort are special in a different way. It’s a special way of saying “I thought of you when I saw this and I want you to have it.”
For my birthday this year, my best friends planned a surprise picnic for me. That cold Delhi afternoon in January with our Pinterest-esque picnic is a core memory we will never forget.
I end up buying a little something for my sister almost every time I go out. Whether it’s her favourite bubble tea, a sweet treat, or a pair of roadside earrings, I carry my love for her everywhere I go, just like she does for me. Sharing joy and gifts with the people in my life is a special connection that is hard to do justice to in words.
