My friend quoted Hermann Hesse on my card:
“Stay as you are by changing every day.”
I don’t remember what present I got, but I do remember those words.
“A small token of my appreciation,” The Rock called it, and indeed, the truck may as well have been a toy, because this gift — a real gift — is not about money. It’s about recognition, about gratitude, and about respect. The truck is just a symbol. Without their nearly two-decade relationship as friends and co-workers, it wouldn’t mean a thing.
Real gifts don’t have to make sense to outsiders. They’re imbued with history, not luxury. As long as you get the message, the world needn’t recognize it as a present.
Every day, we receive small gifts like this. Your partner checks the door is locked after you’ve fallen asleep. They refill your glass while you’re brushing teeth or buy your favorite candy bar without asking. These aren’t burdens lifted from our to-do list. They’re signs of understanding, and that’s why they’re worth much more than the effort they require.
It takes little to give these gifts and even less to accept them, which can make it hard to remember they’re the best gifts of all. Ultimately, however, they’re the only ones we’ll carry with us until the end.
The best gifts are invisible, and they come in odd shapes and sizes. Like eight words on a random birthday — that say so much more than the ink on the page.
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