Our department has a holiday party each year and part of this is a “white elephant” gift exchange. Last year, I hit the $20 limit with a gift bag of art supplies – and it was the most “stolen” and coveted item. Not that it’s a competition, but it was fun to see that I had chosen something engaging.
This year, I was trying to figure out what to share and came across a desktop caddy I had bought that came as a kit to assemble. It was a wooden version of a dumpster and came with little paper pads that looked like fire. So, a dumpster fire. It got me thinking and I decided to do sort of a themed gift bag.
Along with the desktop caddy dumpster fire, I added a small first aid kit, a bottle of hand sanitizer, a box of pop-tarts (my signature, in a way) and a bath bomb. I added a tag to the outside of the bag that said:
Things are weird. Hang in there.
It was a sort of self-care/be ready for anything/gallows humor package and while it wasn’t really fancy, it had been assembled with some thought.
On the day of the gift exchange, most of the items were hot cocoa or wine – it was almost a theme – and mine got chosen towards the end. The recipient showed off the items in the bag and the card – and my colleagues guessed it was from me based on the contents and the pop-tarts in particular.
The next day, the recipient came looking for me in the office and thanked me for the gift bag. He said,
“I know you didn’t put that together just for me, but the tag and all the items in it really spoke to me, “
I was touched by what he said and that he sought me out to share that. That’s really the goal, isn’t it? To have a gift that is appreciated. And while it wasn’t specifically for him, it was meant for everyone on the team.
Things are weird – and not always in a fun way. And I do hope that we can all hang in there and get through the weird times together.
So, it was a success. An odd little collection of gifts that shared intention and hope.