The Best Gift

"I'm living so far beyond my income that we may almost be said to be living apart."
-e e Cummings

Last week Spouse and I were out and about in the shopping mall to watch the Christmas rush unfold.
We saw some novelty cushions in a Christmas gift section: there was an empty plastic sleeve in the front for one to add a photograph of a friend. Cheerfully embroidered into the cushion were the words
"The Best Gift Is a Friend."
We thought about that for a few seconds. If the quote can be thought to be true, then why on earth would I buy the cushion as a gift in the first place? I think that the purchasing of the cushion would negate the validity of the quote and render the item useless with its empty, hollow statement. Why, I might as well buy a plain cushion instead of a fancy, frilly one for ten times the price!

Some might say that Spouse and I cannot possibly have any fun: we pick everything apart when we go out to the stores. Ah, but there is so much there to be picked apart and it keeps us alert and entertained and even though answers never come to us, we do not stop asking questions.