by Molly Larson
On Christmas Day, many people observe gift giving as the top love language. Every year during the holiday season, people spend hours pondering how to get the most unique gift for each person.
Jenna Pelechek, a freshman psychology major, shared what gift giving means to her. “Gifts are not just objects to me,” Pelechek said, “they are a personalized portrayal of your love for someone and evidence that you care enough to pay attention to what they would appreciate receiving.”
Pelechek gave valuable examples of this through the gifts she has given and received. For Christmas one year, she gave her best friend Stacey a tie blanket with patterns and colors that fit her personality. Pelechek mentioned how Stacey uses the blanket she made her every day, and it reminds Pelechek of their friendship.
Pelechek also remembered wanting new rings for Christmas one year, but that she never told anyone. By coincidence, her sister Tessa bought matching rings as a gift for both of them. Every time she sees Tessa’s ring on her finger, it reminds her of their special bond as sisters.
Harper Aumock, a sophomore marketing major, shared that every year her grandpa gives her cash as a gift. “It is unique because he gives the money to me a few weeks before Christmas so that I can use it to buy gifts for my friends and family,” Aumock said.
Last year, Aumock’s best friend from Germany came to visit Minnesota and spend Christmas with Aumock and her family. With the money her grandpa gave her, she bought her and her best friend matching pajamas to wear on Christmas Day. This is a tradition Aumock does every year, and she loved showing her best friend her family’s pajama tradition.
“The lasting impact of a gift is the love shown through the generosity of a giver,” said Aumock. “When someone gives you a gift, the material will fade as time goes on, but the kindness shown in the relationship by the act of giving remains.”
Joshua Waldriff is a senior politics, history and economics major. He remembered one of the most unique gifts he received for Christmas was a case of Pepsi.
“I like Pepsi, but I didn’t understand it as a gift,” said Waldriff. “It wasn’t until I opened it and realized my parents had put a Nintendo 3DS inside that it became one of the most unique gifts I have ever gotten.”
Every year, Waldriff and his family have a handmade gift exchange, which is one of their Christmas traditions. A couple years ago, he made a wooden Christmas tree for his grandpa. Every Christmas season, the tree hangs in his grandpa’s kitchen.
“Depending on the gift, a lot of its impact can come from its sentimental worth and the memories made between the giver and receiver,” Waldriff said. “There is no one impact that a gift can have on a person, but one long-lasting impact it can have is the memory. There are gifts I have received that I will always remember because of the circumstance of the giving, and that will last well longer than the gift itself.”
