Minor Thoughts from me to you

I like gift cards. I know it's considered gauche to give them as a gift but I've never really agreed with that. The common knock against gift cards is that they "show little thought" or demonstrate that you don't know enough about the recipient to know what gift they'd really like. That can be true and in certain settings (like the family or supposedly close business relationships) it can be fatal.

But, in some circumstances, gift cards can also demonstrate both humility and that you do know the recipient well. I'm primarily thinking of circumstances in which the recipient himself doesn't know what he wants and couldn't tell you if you asked. I'm a great example of this. I love to read. And most people think that buying a gift for me is easy: buy a book. This is true.

But, which book? Aye, there's the rub. Oftentimes, I don't know which book I want to read next. I don't even necessarily know which book I want to read in a year. I have ideas of books that I think I might want to read. But a cursory glance at my bookshelf would reveal that there are many books there that I've purchased and never read. I purchased them with good intentions but somehow never quite got around to actually cracking the covers.

Now, there are bad gift card gifts. A gift card to a store I never shop at (and never really want to shop at) does tell me that you don't know me and didn't ask others about me. That gift of a card does validate all of the negative stereotypes about gift cards.

But the fact that bad gift card gifts exist doesn't invalidate the entire category. At least, I don't think so. A gift card, earmarked for books, tells me that you know that I like to read. It also tells me that you're willing to admit that you don't know what I want to read, anymore than I do. And that's appreciated.

I've never had even the slightest hint of resentment about receiving a gift card for books. Quite the opposite, in fact. It's an opportunity for me to browse shelves, slowly and deliberately, looking for something new and unexpected. It's an opportunity for me to splurge on a book that I might not otherwise buy (but will enjoy nonetheless). It's an opportunity for me to complete (or start) a collection that I didn't know I was interested in. It's an opportunity for me to pre-order that book that won't be released for another year.

It's a great gift because, for a time, it's every book everywhere. And that's wonderful.