Stuff That Matters In Life

I just learned that it is acceptable, and in fact encouraged, to take a present that was given to you, but don’t want and give it to someone else as a gift. There is actually a term for that now – regifting.

We’ve gotten a stovetop grill that we wouldn’t use, knick-knacks too fancy that we wouldn’t display, purses that wasn’t my style, or just one too many body lotions. Giving those nice gifts to someone else as a gift was a practical way of not having to spend money to buy new gifts, but we never talked about it! There certainly wasn’t a word for it to broadcast it!

We didn’t want anyone to know first of all, that we didn’t like the gift that someone gave us. Second, isn’t it kind of cheap to give something to someone that you didn’t actually buy? I thought this was a frugal chinese thing to regift. Now apparently, it is quite acceptable and it is considered “green”. You are saving the environment by not buying for goods that require more of the earth’s resources.

“By regifting you’ll eliminate the need for new gifts, whose production requires the unnecessary dissipation of energy and extraction of natural resources. Regifting will also prevent items from ending up in the landfill or incinerator. According to the EPA, each American throws away an average of four pounds a day. That’s a total of 210 million tons a year. Garbage cans everywhere should now read, ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle . . . Regift!’ ”
Thank you! I don’t have to feel tacky or cheap anymore! I can freely regift and feel good about it.

One word of caution: make sure you check the gift thoroughly before you regift.

This is a true story – my mother was given a wallet by her nephew for her birthday that she didn’t want. She regifted it to a friend for her birthday. The next day, the friend called to thank her profusely. “Your gift was too generous. You didn’t have to give me $100!” Apparently there was a $100 bill inside the wallet given to my mom by her nephew! Ughhh…!