This Is Why I Stopped Giving Gifts On Special Occasions

Before you call me Grinchy McGrincherson, hear me out.

Kristi Keller
Middle-Pause

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I realize brunch is best suited for mimosa-loving middle-aged people who can’t resist a good buffet. However, last week, I risked it with my 9-year-old grandson for his birthday.

He cracked a joke about going on a date with an old lady and then we ate a delicious meal together. I enjoyed catching up on how he busily spent his summer and listening to how he can now do backflips into a foam pit.

And then it happened.

He alluded to his birthday gift…which I didn’t bring…because I didn’t buy him one.

When he slyly brought it up, I asked him, “Remember that thing I bought you last year?”

He proved my point in one word — NO. He had zero recollection of what I gave him for his birthday last year.

I asked, “Do you remember where we went last time I saw you before summer?”

We went bowling, and he remembered right away.

Then I asked, “Do you remember where we went for your 7th birthday?”

His eyes lit up as he instantly recalled that we’d gone to a petting farm, got dirty with pigs and donkeys, and then took a September tractor ride through…

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Kristi Keller
Middle-Pause

Write like no one is reading, because it might be true. Never let the truth stand in the way of a good story. https://wildhoodwanted.substack.com/