Guest Author - Melissa Weise
Adults are so difficult to buy for. They generally aren’t interested in really neat stuff like video games, toys, or all the “good” music. So, what do you get them? Let’s face it, you can’t buy clothes for them and they honestly don’t want ties, bubble bath, or small appliances (no matter how much they say the do – after all, how excited would you be about a toaster?). Not to mention you can’t afford the things that they really would like such as cars and electronics (big screen TV anyone).
But don’t give up yet! There are some really cool gifts that you can still give your parents (or other adults in your life) that won’t break the bank and they won’t have to brush up on their acting skills for to tell you how much they love it.
A really good gift has three qualities, it means something to the other person, it shows thoughtfulness of your part and you can actually get it (either by making or buying it). For some examples, read on:
MUSIC. No, your parents probably aren’t so much into L.L. Cool J or Beyonce, but they most likely have music that they love of their own. People tend to really love the music they listened to when they were teenagers and young adults. Unfortunately, much of their favorite stuff is most likely on vinyl records, eight racks, and cassette tapes. But you probably have the technological smarts to download, playlist and burn this music into a much more updated format. This would make a great gift and meets all three criteria.
A LESSON. There are many things have trouble with and I am sure you know what your particular adults struggle with that you do better. Some common things are programming their cell phones, downloading from the internet, computers in general, and digital photography. So your gift can be the gift of a lesson so that the adult in your life can move that much further into the technological age.
A GIFT IN THEIR NAME. Forget about naming a star after someone (how lame is that?), you can actually do some good for others in a really neat way with many charitable organizations. For example, at Heifer International you can purchase a pig, goat, cow or many other animals to donate to a family or town in need. Instead of sending canned goods, these animals will provide ongoing food for desperately poor individuals. You could also donate to Make a Wish foundation for terminally ill children, FirstBook to provide books to poor children, or Kiva to provide a micro loan to a poor person in another country to start his or her own business. Many of these organizations will provide a nice package of information for the person in whose name you donated so that you can give that to the adult in your life.
A SUBSCRIPTION. Besides just magazines (which are always good) you can also get subscriptions to craft clubs, cheese clubs, coffee clubs and just about every other club for any other interest you can think of. There is even an orange club- yeah, like the fruit. This gift keeps giving all year long (usually monthly) and can be an inexpensive as ten or twenty dollars.
The main thing to remember is that gift giving is about finding something that the person you are giving the gift to would really love. Not necessarily how much money you spend. So, think about it and get honestly happy reactions the next time you have to give a gift to an adult.
