Years ago, I had an idea for a coworker — and friend’s — birthday gift. (Probably read it somewhere and have totally forgotten the source.) It cost nothing, it’s very positive and uplifting, one or more than one person can create it, and the giver(s) feel as good about it as the recipient does.The idea is to write a sincere list of things you like and admire about the birthday person. The number of items corresponds to the person’s age; for example, you create “50 Things I Love about Cathy” for a friend’s 50th birthday.
My coworkers and I were a close-knit bunch who worked in a fairly small area, and we made it for my friend’s 60th birthday. She’d had two bouts with cancer and I wanted to do something special.
We simply started a piece of paper with the title “60 Things We Love about Denise” around the room, after I’d added ten or so items at the beginning to give people ideas and get the ball rolling, and everyone added as many items as they could think of to the list.
I wasn’t sure what the response would be, but it really made everyone think about the birthday person’s best traits and we got some great responses! Some of the men wrote cute things like “You clean up real good!” and other people added remarks like “You’re an excellent editor,” “You’re a good listener,” etc.
I hope my friend liked it, and I know it made me feel good to give that gift!
I liked the idea so much that I asked my son and daughter-in-law to make the same kind of list for me for a milestone birthday — and it’s one of my prized possessions! (See my blog post about it.)
A friend of mine asked for the same thing from her son and daughter on a milestone birthday, and she loved the list they gave her, too.
This is also a great Christmas gift!
Why not give this idea a try? Who can you create a list for?
I guarantee they’ll love it.
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You Can Make Someone You Love the Best Gift Ever — at No Cost
Good idea! I really appreciate homemade gifts.
I love this idea, Diane! 🙂 I’m going to do this on my dad’s birthday which is next month! This is wonderful!
Thanks for sharing.
Cheers,
Jessica
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