Gifts as a way to show our appreciation
Gifts come from the heart and are a way to show our mutual appreciation. A gift tells our loved ones: I thought of you and put my own interests aside. In my search for the right gift, I put myself in the recipient's shoes and wondered what he or she might like or remembered things he or she mentioned in the past. Sometimes we might discover the perfect gift by chance while we are out shopping and might decide to get it, even though we will only gift it much later.
Special gifts for special occasions
Gifting is a pleasure—on special occasions all the more so. Research tells us why this is so. Generally speaking, we like to gift presents because it does us good. And a study by the Allensbach Institute for Public Opinion Research adds: at Christmas, 87 percent of Germans do not only look forward to receiving gifts, but also to gifting presents to their loved ones.
Tradition and culture
The tradition of Christmas gifts dates back to the 13th century. But already much before that, people were gifting presents on various occasions. Gifting presents is an age-old global tradition that is almost as old as human history itself and still very much alive to this day. This is why there is more than one theory out there on how it all started. One says that we give because we want to get to know a person better. Another says that gifts were meant to ensure peaceful coexistence with our neighbors. Both might be true—and gifts are always a pleasant surprise. A beautifully wrapped present, gifted in the right atmosphere can truly create moments that will last forever.
A very festive glow
A neatly wrapped gift under the Christmas tree can make eyes shine. And the anticipation of what is inside this nicely wrapped present—be it large or small— under the Christmas tree is actually the most exciting part of gifting. The way people unpack a gift tells us a lot about them. Some celebrate the moment: they slowly remove the ribbon and free the wrapping paper of all adhesive strips or read the card before opening the present. Others are more impatient and simply rip the paper right away. And then comes the moment of truth: does he or she likes it, does it fit, is it truly a surprise? It might not always meet the taste, but every gift that was selected and wrapped with a lot of care and love will always brighten our day and it is a pleasure to say thank you—thank you for the effort, thank you for your appreciation, and thank you for thinking of me. Let us look forward to our special gift brightening someone else's day.
