Our Tradition of ‘Gift Opening Fun’
(Or: Not Unwrapping Gifts Like a Pack of Wild Hyenas…)
Written by Deborah Brauser of Travel Browsing with Deb
 
My Mom loves Christmas. I mean, we all do. But my Mom? She really, really loves everything about it from the decorations and the music, to special food items and even all the shopping and planning that goes into coordinating several different big get-togethers. Her favorite thing about Christmas (and really all holidays) is tradition. And the big one that has always made me smile is the way my immediate family approaches opening presents…

I remember being shocked the first time I went to a boyfriend’s house and saw the chaotic free-for-all that was their idea of a great way to unwrap gifts. As soon as each present was handed out, it was instantly opened and then tossed to the side without even a thank you, as the recipient looked for the next shiny package.

I was stunned because, although that family was clearly having a great time, it was completely alien to me. And it was the first time I wondered, were we the strange ones??

Here’s how it has always worked in my family: we all sit in a big circle in the room with the Christmas tree. Each gift is passed out, and then we go around 1 at a time as each participant opens 1 gift at a time before the next person takes a turn. This continues until everything has been opened.

Even as little kids, my brother and I just accepted that this was the way it was done. But as I got older, I appreciated that this was also a fun way to honor the thought that went into each present. Everyone could ooh and ah over a pretty sweater from my sister-in-law or a collector book about a favorite basketball team from my Dad. And because we enjoy the process, we often ensure that it goes on as long as possible by wrapping up several small gifts.

Now, that’s not to say there haven’t been a few mishaps over the years. Once, I had 3 wrapped gifts from my brother and sister-in-law. When I opened the first item, it was a DVD for a movie I’d never heard of before. “Oh, this looks really interesting! Can’t wait to see what this is about,” I told him at the time (and meant). But I noticed a look of worry creep over my brother’s face.

When I opened their second gift, I couldn’t help myself from saying, “Really? A Madonna CD?” before adding, “You know, maybe I should give her old songs another listen.” But as I reached for their third gift, my sister-in-law stopped me. “I knew these things didn’t sound like her!”

We finally figured out that my brother had stumbled upon my Amazon Wish List, which shows items I’d like to buy for myself. But he had then clicked on a different link showing someone else’s actual wants. Yikes! We were all giggling at that point, with the laughter growing even louder when I finally unwrapped their last gift — a child’s size small Johnny Depp t-shirt.

Still, it didn’t really matter. We laughed the rest of the night, joked about whether someone else had “my gifts” and took pictures of me with all of the wrong items.

Of course, the whole time my Mom was laughing in delight. And why shouldn’t she? This is her tradition, passed down from her Mother’s side. She loves to tell the story about splitting up a pair of house-slippers for her twin sister when they were kids, putting each one in a separate, differently-shaped box. Or about how her older sister once wrapped up different coin amounts, with a few dimes in 1 package, some pennies in another, etc.

I’ve now learned through the years that our gift unwrapping process really is pretty unusual and the “open in a wild frenzy” style is far more common. But I don’t care. This particular tradition always means we’re going to have a fun time… together. And really, isn’t that a lovely thing to get for Christmas?

Shown here with her favorite gift last year (a model of a brain!), Deborah Brauser is a freelance medical and travel writer. Clients and publications include Medscape Medical News, WebMD, The Oncology Nurse, Southern Hospitality, Traveler, and Orlando Attractions Magazine. Her travel blog is located at http://TravelBrowsingWithDeb.com .