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I'm all for a good Christmas gift, but this Christmas I was shocked -- in a good way, mind you -- by a present from my mother. Since my wife, son and I are again on the move (we tend to change locations quite frequently), my mother thought that some moving money would make a great gift.
While I've rarely refused a little holiday cash, this time she went too far.
A $1,000 Gift!
Along with a few other presents, my mother gave me a card that included a check for $1000! I was stunned, surprised, yet felt a strange twinge in my belly. It was too much.
For some, it might seem hard to understand. "How could a cash gift of any sort be too much?" they might be asking themselves. Well, all I can tell you was that my subconscious was raising alarm bells about a gift this size from my dear mother.
I Gave it BACK?
I immediately told my mother it was just too much money and that I couldn't accept a gift of this sort. She replied by telling me that we were moving and could use the cash (which is true) and that I should just take it since she wanted me to have it.
Knowing my mother, and how stubborn she is, I decided to drop the issue for the moment, stashing the check safely away, but not cashing it.
Later in the week, I again broached the subject, sternly telling my mother that I just couldn't accept the money. Cashing that check would be no sort of holiday gift for me and would just leave me feeling guilty; and that's not what the holidays are about.
And thus, I convinced her to take the check back.
Why would I do such a thing?
Believe me, there was certainly a part of me that was tempted to keep the cash. But there were several things troubling me. First off, my mother is single, and while she has a reasonable income, it is by no means excessive. $1,000 is a lot of money to her and to me.
Secondly, at age 63, dear mom is nearing retirement, and in my mind, she should be stashing every available penny away in order to prepare for this event. The sooner she can retire, the sooner she can spend more time with us, and that is worth it to me. I'd rather have her closer to and spending more time with us than her money.
The True Meaning of the Holidays
As I handed the check back to her, I told my mother that I always knew she would be there if I needed her financially and that she could count on the same about me, and having that knowledge is good enough. Therefore, I explained, I certainly appreciated the gesture, but I didn't need the money, and that she should keep it.
So, in a weird kind of way, I guess through our love and mutual respect for one another, we actually both gave each other a $1,000 gift this season without it costing either of us a dime.
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