Bilbies, Bunnies, Eggs And Easter

On February 14th, you say it with flowers. At Easter however, you say it with chocolate. But what is it that you really want to say? Is it I was thinking of you and here’s a token of my appreciation that cost me two dollars from Target, or I think you’re fabulous and I want to spoil you rotten with a scrumptious assortment of goodies from a specialist? Or perhaps what you want to say falls somewhere in the middle but if you’re especially unlucky, you’ll also be wondering what on Earth you’ll be given in return.

Normally Easter is not such a big deal and many of you may not have even encountered this problem before but this time of year always reminds me of my friend Bob. We were walking through a department store one year when she expressed the problem of not knowing how much to spend on an Easter gift for a ‘friend’. It was particularly hilarious at the time however because she chose to express the problem thus: “What if he…” (confused face accompanied by small agitated hand movements similar to trying to squash a balloon), “what if I…” (confused and pained face accompanied by a much larger agitated hand movements). Ever articulate was my friend Bob.

She has never quite heard the end of this of course (and bear in mind, we were teenagers at the time so we’ve made good use of it since then) but I don’t believe that this issue is one that no one else has faced. At times of mutual gift exchanges (such as Easter), what kind of gesture should you make? Should you make a nice gesture or even a grand gesture towards someone you’re interested in or should you merely make a friendly one? Will you be mortally embarrassed if you feel you have gone ‘over the top’ or would you be unconcerned if you had offered a larger gift for little or nothing in return?

I’m talking here about feelings and egos rather than how generous you are with your wealth or lack thereof. Many of us are reticent about saying I like you or I really like you (let alone I love you), and no one wants to feel rejected. It can be a harsh blow to find out that your desire is not returned and some of us feel that it is better to play it safe rather than put yourself on the line. Some people see giving gifts as largely symbolic and more than just participating in a ritual celebration. They consider that a gift represents in part their feelings towards the receiver.

Of course, this is not actually the case with everyone however. Which is just as well I guess, cause the only people I received Easter eggs from this year were my work and my parents.