The gift of a cookie

Tis the season for the giving of gifts and that got me thinking.

Now we have all heard that “it is better to give than to receive” and that saying in itself has many different levels to ponder about but I was thinking more along the lines of the giving and the gift side of the equation.

Cookies are wonderful magical things. The smell of cookies baking in the oven, then cooling on the rack, and then lightly burning fingers as they approach then melt in your mouth with their tasty delights has got to rank up there as one of the greatest pleasures in life. What could be better, than perhaps fresh baked bread to give a scents of home?

The varieties are endless, from hard and crunchy to soft and chewy, or no bake cookies that pop out quickly to pastries that take all day to prepare, or simple dough cookies to those with added ingredients such as chocolate chips, assorted nuts, fruits and of course various secret family recipes. With so many to choose from there has to be a favorite (or should I say several favorite) cookie(s) out there for everyone.

If you were to give the gift of a cookie, which is better, to give the gift of your favorite cookie or to give the gift of the favorite cookie of the person you are giving the gift to?

Now I chose cookies because there are so many different kinds of cookies that I don’t know of anyone that doesn’t have at least one kind that they like and maybe one kind that they like a little less. (If you can’t tell, I really like cookies. I have more than one favorite. You cannot go wrong sharing a cookie with me. And although I am learning to like them a little better, floater cookies (better known as raison cookies) are not as high on my list.)

So in choosing a cookie to share with another, do you pick your favorite cookie (out of the many) as it represents a little bit of who you are and thus the act becomes one of sharing yourself with another, or in others words you are giving of yourself to another and because it is one of your favorites it represents your love and passion (did I tell you I like cookies) with someone that you feel good about and you want to share that feeling of warmth with them?

Or do you take the time and effort to find out what the favorite cookie is of the person you wish to give a cookie to then continue to put forth the effort to make the cookie just the way they like it in order to share with this person something you now know they will appreciate thereby also giving of yourself through your time and efforts and once again being able to share that feeling of warmth with them?

As the receiver of the gift of a cookie, do you receive the cookie gratefully at all times? Do you say “Thank you for this cookie” but secretly say “This cookie is o.k. but I really wish it was my favorite cookie instead” or “This is my favorite cookie, how did they know” or “All right, I got a cookie”? (I generally tend to the latter.)

So in this season of fretting and stewing over the commercialism and materialism that our gift giving has become, perhaps we should just step back and give the gift of a cookie (or a plate of cookies). After all, it’s not the gift but the thought that counts. Oops, there is another saying with multiple levels to ponder. But that will have to wait for later. Right now I need a cookie.

This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farr West.