Birthdays... and middle age giving

My wife and I are at that point in our lives when gift giving is, for both of us, somewhat challenging. If you've ever read the silly little book called, "The Five Love Languages", you'll know that gift giving is one way some people feel loved and affirmed. However, that doesn't seem to be the case in the Dahlstrom household, at least with the parents. I wouldn't say it's because we're living so simply, though we try to. Rather, it's because we have particular tastes, and when we want something, we'll probably just go buy it anyway - and we're also at a point where frivilous stuff that we'll neither use or enjoy is just not worth having around.

So for my wife's birthday , I gave a sewing machine to a woman in India who can use it to start her own business. And of course, my wife is of such a nature that she was delighted. She'd spent the previous weeks sewing costumes for my daughter's school play, and it was, for her, an appropriate way to bless someone else. Happy birthday to my wife, who lives so generously. Want to give such gifts yourself? Check this out.