Christmas Gift

The Gift of the Magi THE GIFT OF THE MAGI by O. Henry One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. Andsixty cents of it was in pennies. Pennies saved one and twoat a time by bulldozing the grocer and the vegetable man andthe butcher until one's cheeks burned with the silentimputation of parsimony that such close dealing implied. Three times Della counted it. One dollar and eighty- sevencents. And the next day would be Christmas. There was clearly nothing to do but flop down on theshabby little couch and howl. So Della did it. Whichinstigates the moral reflection that life is made up ofsobs, sniffles, and smiles, with sniffles predominating. While the mistress of the home is gradually subsidingfrom the first stage to the second, take a look at the home.A furnished flat at $8 per week. It did not exactly beggardescription, but it certainly had that word on the lookoutfor the mendicancy squad. In the vestibule below was a letter-box into which noletter would go, and an electric button from which no mortalfinger could coax a ring. Also appertaining thereunto was acard bearing the name "Mr. James Dillingham Young." The "Dillingham" had been flung to the breeze during aformer period of prosperity when its possessor was beingpaid $30 per week. Now, when the income was shrunk to $20,though, they were thinking seriously of contracting to amodest and unassuming D. But whenever Mr. James DillinghamYoung came home and reached his flat above he was called"Jim" and greatly hugged by Mrs. James Dillingham Young,already introduced to you as Della. Which is all very good. Della finished her cry and attended to her cheeks withthe powder rag. She stood by the window and looked out dullyat a gray cat walking a gray fence in a gray backyard.Tomorrow would be Christmas Day, and she had only $1.87 withwhich to buy Jim a present. She had been saving every pennyshe could for months, with this result. Twenty dollars aweek doesn't go far. Expenses had been greater than she hadcalculated. They always are. Only $1.87 to buy a present forJim. Her Jim. Many a happy hour she had spent planning forsomething nice for him. Something fine and rare andsterling--something just a little bit near to being worthyof the honor of being owned by Jim. There was a pier-glass between the windows of the room.Perhaps you have seen a pier-glass in an $8 flat. A very thin and very agile person may, by observing his reflection in arapid sequence of longitudinal strips, obtain a fairlyaccurate conception of his looks. Della, being slender, hadmastered the art. Suddenly she whirled from the window and stood beforethe glass. her eyes were shining brilliantly, but her facehad lost its color within twenty seconds. Rapidly she pulleddown her hair and let it fall to its full length. Now, there were two possessions of the James DillinghamYoungs in which they both took a mighty pride. One was Jim'sgold watch that had been his father's and his grandfather's.The other was Della's hair. Had the queen of Sheba lived inthe flat across the airshaft, Della would have let her hairhang out the window some day to dry just to depreciate Her Majesty's jewels and gifts. Had King Solomon been thejanitor, with all his treasures piled up in the basement,Jim would have pulled out his watch every time he passed,just to see him pluck at his beard from envy. So now Della's beautiful hair fell about her ripplingand shining like a cascade of brown waters. It reached belowher knee and made itself almost a garment for her. And thenshe did it up again nervously and quickly. Once she falteredfor a minute and stood still while a tear or two splashed onthe worn red carpet. On went her old brown jacket; on went her old brownhat. With a whirl of skirts and with the brilliant sparklestill in her eyes, she fluttered out the door and down thestairs to the street. Where she stopped the sign read: "Mne. Sofronie. HairGoods of All Kinds." One flight up Della ran, and collectedherself, panting. Madame, large, too white, chilly, hardlylooked the "Sofronie." "Will you buy my hair?" asked Della. "I buy hair," said Madame. "Take yer hat off and let'shave a sight at the looks of it." Down rippled the brown cascade. "Twenty dollars," said Madame, lifting the mass with apractised hand. "Give it to me quick," said Della. Oh, and the next two hours tripped by on rosy wings.Forget the hashed metaphor. She was ransacking the storesfor Jim's present. She found it at last. It surely had been made for Jimand no one else. There was no other like it in any of thestores, and she had turned all of them inside out. It was aplatinum fob chain simple and chaste in design, properlyproclaiming its value by substance alone and not by meretriciousornamentation--as all good things should do. Itwas even worthy of The Watch. As soon as she saw it she knewthat it must be Jim's. It was like him. Quietness andvalue--the description applied to both. Twenty-one dollarsthey took from her for it, and she hurried home with the 87cents. With that chain on his watch Jim might be properlyanxious about the time in any company. Grand as the watchwas, he sometimes looked at it on the sly on account of theold leather strap that he used in place of a chain. When Della reached home her intoxication gave way alittle to prudence and reason. She got out her curling ironsand lighted the gas and went to work repairing the ravagesmade by generosity added to love. Which is always atremendous task, dear friends--a mammoth task. Within forty minutes her head was covered with tiny,close-lying curls that made her look wonderfully like a truantschoolboy. She looked at her reflection in the mirrorlong, carefully, and critically. "If Jim doesn't kill me," she said to herself, "beforehe takes a second look at me, he'll say I look like a ConeyIsland chorus girl. But what could I do--oh! what could Ido with a dollar and eighty- seven cents?" At 7 o'clock the coffee was made and the frying-pan wason the back of the stove hot and ready to cook the chops. Jim was never late. Della doubled the fob chain in herhand and sat on the corner of the table near the door thathe always entered. Then she heard his step on the stair away down on the first flight, and sheturned white for just a moment. She had a habit for sayinglittle silent prayer about the simplest everyday things, andnow she whispered: "Please God, make him think I am stillpretty." The door opened and Jim stepped in and closed it. Helooked thin and very serious. Poor fellow, he was onlytwenty-two--and to be burdened with a family! He needed anew overcoat and he was without gloves. Jim stopped inside the door, as immovable as a setterat the scent of quail. His eyes were fixed upon Della, andthere was an expression in them that she could not read, andit terrified her. It was not anger, nor surprise, nordisapproval, nor horror, nor any of the sentiments that shehad been prepared for. He simply stared at her fixedly withthat peculiar expression on his face. Della wriggled off the table and went for him. "Jim, darling," she cried, "don't look at me that way.I had my hair cut off and sold because I couldn't have livedthrough Christmas without giving you a present. It'll growout again--you won't mind, will you? I just had to do it. Myhair grows awfully fast. Say `Merry Christmas!' Jim, andlet's be happy. You don't know what a nice-- what abeautiful, nice gift I've got for you." "You've cut off your hair?" asked Jim, laboriously, asif he had not arrived at that patent fact yet even after thehardest mental labor. "Cut it off and sold it," said Della. "Don't you likeme just as well, anyhow? I'm me without my hair, ain't I?" Jim looked about the room curiously. "You say your hair is gone?" he said, with an airalmost of idiocy. "You needn't look for it," said Della. "It's sold, Itell you--sold and gone, too. It's Christmas Eve, boy. Begood to me, for it went for you. Maybe the hairs of my headwere numbered," she went on with sudden serious sweetness,"but nobody could ever count my love for you. Shall I putthe chops on, Jim?" Out of his trance Jim seemed quickly to wake. Heenfolded his Della. For ten seconds let us regard withdiscreet scrutiny some inconsequential object in the otherdirection. Eight dollars a week or a million a year--what isthe difference? A mathematician or a wit would give you thewrong answer. The magi brought valuable gifts, but that wasnot among them. This dark assertion will be illuminatedlater on. Jim drew a package from his overcoat pocket and threwit upon the table. "Don't make any mistake, Dell," he said, "about me. Idon't think there's anything in the way of a haircut or ashave or a shampoo that could make me like my girl any less.But if you'll unwrap that package you may see why you had megoing a while at first." White fingers and nimble tore at the string and paper.And then an ecstatic scream of joy; and then, alas! a quickfeminine change to hysterical tears and wails, necessitatingthe immediate employment of all the comforting powers of thelord of the flat. For there lay The Combs--the set of combs, side andback, that Della had worshipped long in a Broadway window.Beautiful combs, pure tortoise shell, with jewelledrims--just the shade to wear in the beautiful vanished hair.They were expensive combs, she knew, and her heart hadsimply craved and yearned over them without the least hopeof possession. And now, they were hers, but the tresses thatshould have adorned the coveted adornments were gone. But she hugged them to her bosom, and at length she wasable to look up with dim eyes and a smile and say: "My hairgrows so fast, Jim!" And them Della leaped up like a little singed cat andcried, "Oh, oh!" Jim had not yet seen his beautiful present. She held itout to him eagerly upon her open palm. The dull preciousmetal seemed to flash with a reflection of her bright andardent spirit. "Isn't it a dandy, Jim? I hunted all over town to findit. You'll have to look at the time a hundred times a daynow. Give me your watch. I want to see how it looks on it." Instead of obeying, Jim tumbled down on the couch andput his hands under the back of his head and smiled. "Dell," said he, "let's put our Christmas presents awayand keep 'em a while. They're too nice to use just atpresent. I sold the watch to get the money to buy yourcombs. And now suppose you put the chops on." The magi, as you know, were wise men--wonderfully wisemen--who brought gifts to the Babe in the manger. Theyinvented the art of giving Christmas presents. Being wise,their gifts were no doubt wise ones, possibly bearing theprivilege of exchange in case of duplication. And here Ihave lamely related to you the uneventful chronicle of twofoolish children in a flat who most unwisely sacrificed foreach other the greatest treasures of their house. But in alast word to the wise of these days let it be said that ofall who give gifts these two were the wisest. O all who giveand receive gifts, such as they are wisest. Everywhere theyare wisest. They are the magi. Return to Christmas Poems and Stories Hypertext format ©1996 Rosemary (Rosie) Winters rosiec@night.net . All rights reserved.

Gifts For Men Articles

Graduation Gifts For Men - Gifts BW gifts | gifts Resources | Add URL Wine Gifts & Baskets From the casual wine drinker to the serious enthusiast, we have a gift that will make them smile. Our selection includes premium wine, gourmet baskets, distinctive champagne sets & the very finest California and Northwest wines. Graduation Gifts For Men Articles Top 10 Graduation Gifts Graduation from high school is a happy occasion for parents and children. It's a right of passage which deserves to be marked with gifts of dignity and lasting sentiment. Here are my suggestions....( Continue Reading ) The Perfect Travel Gift If the object of your affection is heading for Canada, or if they are already here, to another part of Canada, here are some practical and some whimsical gifts that could be considered....( Continue Reading ) Dive Watches for Men Ten dive watches that make excellent gifts for any occasion like father's day, graduation, birthdays, Christmas, etc. Get a dive watch for that SCUBA man in your life.......( Continue Reading ) scuba diving gift ideas, clothing, hats, jewelry, dive patches, computer software, books, videos, novelty items Top picks for scuba diving gift ideas such as clothing, hats, jewelry, dive patches, computer software, books and videos....( Continue Reading ) Dive Watches for Men - Citizen, Seiko, Casio, Suunto, Luminox Navy SEAL, Timex, St. Moritz, Invicta Ten dive watches that make excellent gifts for any occasion like father's day, graduation, birthdays, Christmas, etc....( Continue Reading ) Graduation Gifts For Men Directory Links gifts collectibles gifts for anniversaries college sports gifts original wedding gifts gifts for 12 year old girls gift baskets in michigan christmas gifts for women easter baskets to make best gifts for men unique gifts for women golf gifts and novelties get well baskets spiritual gifts test online boyfriend christmas gifts christmas gifts for guys simple gifts shaker hymn personalized fathers day gifts gift baskets of texas buying gifts online longenberger baskets macbirdie golf gifts thanksgiving gift baskets grooms men gifts valentines day and gifts send gifts to uk gifts for 25th wedding anniversary gift baskets columbus ohio gift baskets for women gift baskets of idaho world vision gifts traditional wedding aniversary gifts horse gifts college graduation gifts military retirement gifts mothers day and gifts send india gifts crafts christmas gifts corporate food gifts christmas gifts for him gift baskets houston christmas gifts teens inexpensive christmas gifts to make spa gifts birthday gifts for mother corporate gifts online Popular Search Terms: Gifts BW © 2004 Gifts BW All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. All Rights Reserved. This site is not related to Brajeshwar or Brajeshwar.com in anyway, shape or form

Housewarming gifts Dating Photo

Housewarming gifts SY L.com > Online Dating Service > Flowers & Gifts > Popular gift ideas > Housewarming gifts Dating Photo Personals Meet singles Personal Ads Tour Join Articles Login Housewarming gifts Flowers & Gifts Your personal gift guide Gift aid Art of gift giving Choosing a perfect gift Gift packaging Gift wrapping Gift bags & boxes Gift cards & tags Popular gift ideas Thank you gifts Charitable gifts Baby & kids gifts Gifts for him Gifts for her Romantic gifts Religious gifts Get well gifts Party gifts Housewarming gifts Adult Gifts Sympathy gifts Gifts for friends Gifts for teens Business gifts Holiday gifts Graduation gift Easter gifts Valentines day gift Mothers day gift Fathers day gift Christmas gift Birthday gift Anniversary gift Bouquet & Arrangement Mothers Day Flowers Valentines Day Flowers Birthday Flowers Sympathy and funeral flowers Easter flowers Wedding flowers Flower language Exotic flowers Gerber daisies Carnations Tulips Roses Flowers & plants House plants Dried flowers Garden flowers Fresh cut & artificial flowers Flower market variety Seasonal flowers Flower delivery services Wholesale flowers Housewarming gifts Your friends or relatives are moving into a new house, and youre invited on the housewarming. Of course, guests arent supposed to come with empty hands, and the case is rather special. So you face a problem of a housewarming gift. A lot of different traditions are connected with moving into a new house. Some of them are very ancient, about most we dont know, and even less we follow. The times have changed a lot and so have done some of those traditions. Nowadays housewarming gifts arent supposed to be massive and expensive, as they were used to be before. But they should be useful. As well as in case of celebrating marriage, you are welcome to ask the hosts if they need anything on their new place. Nowadays its normal to present money, though it could be taken as offence in the previous centuries. Still you can present some symbolic housewarming gifts. It can be a figure of a household ghost, who is supposed to conjure evil away. There existed a tradition to let a cat or a cock into a new house first. So cats, cocks, hens and dogs are considered to be the keepers of a new home. Nobody expects that you will bring the whole zoo with you on the housewarming, but you may present some statues, figures and toys, shaped like these animals, or nicely decorated pictures with their images. Another ancient tradition is to hang a horseshoe, found on the road, over the door. So anything, that reminds of a horseshoe or has its shape, presented as a housewarming gift, will show the hosts that you wish they felt comfortable on the new place.. The prosaic, but useful gifts, like kitchen towels, set of glasses, frying pens, set of utensils, a small carpet in the corridor, bad-clothes wont excite a hostess too much. But you can be sure that already next day she might remember you in the warmest words. If you wan to give something both nice and useful, you may choose some original vases or wall clocks. Always keep in mind that humble but long-lasting gifts are much better, than a bunch of roses which will be thrown away by the end by the week. Online Dating Service · Photo Personals · Meet singles · Personal Ads · Directory · Dating Site · Dating advice · Articles Privacy Statement | Terms of Use | Site Map | Contact Us | Report a Bug © 2004,2005 SearchYourLove TM partners sites: Great Holidays and Hotels // Health and Beauty Journal // MotorListing // Millennium Rise // EstateIndex // Russian brides // Mail order brides // Casino journal // Dating & Personals // Admotor Russian brides // Gambling online // Mail order brides // Admotor // Millennium Rise // MotorListing // EstateIndex Great Holidays and Hotels // Health and Beauty Journal

Anniversary Gifts are given

Anniversary Gift Ideas | Anniversary Gifs by Year Anniversary Rock Anniversary gift ideas... Anniversary Year Traditional Gifts Modern Gifts 1st Anniversary Paper Clocks 2nd Anniversary Cotton China 3rd Anniversary Leather Crystal, Glass 4th Anniversary Linen, Silk Electrical Appliances 5th Anniversary Wood Silverware 6th Anniversary Iron Wood 7th Anniversary Wool, Copper Pen & Pencil Sets 8th Anniversary Bronze Linens, Laces 9th Anniversary Pottery, China Leather 10th Anniversary Tin, Aluminum Diamond Jewelry 11th Anniversary Steel Jewelry, Accessories 12th Anniversary Silk Pearls, Colored Gems 13th Anniversary Lace Textiles, Furs 14th Anniversary Ivory Gold Jewelry 15th Anniversary Crystal Watches 20th Anniversary China Platinum 25th Anniversary Silver Sterling Silver 30th Anniversary Pearl Diamond 35th Anniversary Coral Jade 40th Anniversary Ruby Ruby 45th Anniversary Sapphire Sapphire 50th Anniversary Gold Gold 55th Anniversary Emerald Emerald 60th Anniversary Diamond Diamond Party Supplies for an Anniversary Party Party Games for a Wedding Anniversary Anniversary Gifts are given by boththe husband and wife. Choose something special like an engravedgift. For the anniversary weekend away, hotelsspecials will make the spending less. Travel and renew yourvows. A party with friends and family is also a wonderful way tocelebration your anniversary. Bandanasand hats are fun to use for anniversary theme parties. It's a crazyanniversary hat party! Every party should have a unique them which shouldflow throughout the event. From the invitations to the thank younotes. For a florists who specializes inanniversary flowers, buy direct from the grower. This is a great costsaver. Flowers are a beautiful way to say I Love You. Laborday weekend ends the summer with friends and family. Take the longweekend to celebrate your anniversary. Red, White and Blue flowers make acheerful decoration. Mrs. Party haslots of fun party ideas and information on anniversaries. Also, Mrs. Partyis an expert on etiquette. When traveling on a road trip for youranniversary use vacation map so that youdon't get lost. Hello friends, I regret to announce that THE ANNIVERSARY has officially broken up. We've madelarge strides in the music world, but we weren't prepared for all the changes inour lives. We'd like to thank everyone for their support at our shows and ofcourse the purchasing of our merchandise. There is another band that has started up due to the downfall of TheAnniversary. "The Only Children" features Josh, James, and Christianfrom The Anniversary. The band also features Casey from Hot Rod Circuit, T.KWebb a solo performer originally from Lawrence, KS but now residing in NY andHeide Gluck of the Pieces and Some girls. Please check the website for updatesand pictures at www.theonlychildren.com . As for the other members... Justin is currenly working on a solo release that is yet to be titled. Adrianne hasjoined up with the former members of another KC band "the Gadjits".They are currently working on a project yet to be named. Please check back at alater date for more information. Thanks again everyone for everything. Peace out, The Anniversary Questions or comments may be addressed to theanniversary@hotmail.com Other Helpful Sites: rockandrollhosting.com

Gifts

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