CHOOSING GIFTS FOR YOUR PRECIOUS PAPPA
The father in this story is me, Mariner2 and the gifters are my son, daughter, both in California and Son In Law To Be(SILTB), based in Atlanta.
Circa 2003 AD
My son was visiting India a few weeks down the line, on a vacation, and called to ask me what gift I needed for him to bring. I told him I will have to think about this offer and will get back to him via e-mail.
Regretfully, I am through with the vilaayati stuff like clothing, aftershaves, scotch wiskey, choclates, soaps and the stuff that Indian born American desi kids gift their parents when visiting India.
With due deligience and application of the mind, * I informed him via e-mail that I needed a Ping Golf set. Now golf is my passion and my handicap was stuck at 18, primarily due to bad equipment. Ping irons is probably one of the most expensive golf set to buy in the USA and I picked the latest **Ping Eye 3 plus as a perfect gift.
I scoured the web sites, sent him the links. He replied that he had no problems getting them to India and would I take care of the Customs duty. That I did, courtesy my contacts in the Navy and the Coast Gaurd. Customs issue settled. All settled.
A week or two before he landed, I got a call to say that the Ping Golf set was way too expensive for him and would I consider that for the next time he visited India.
I was stunned! I felt badly short changed by my own son! I just shut him out and spoke rather sternly and rudely, as if he was taking me for a ride.
That unsettled him. A week before he landed in India, he informed me that he had the Ping golf clubs and that all was fine!
A few weeks later his mother questioned him….and he told her “Mummy, I knew that I had to live in India with you and Pappa and hence I brought my peace with this golf set!”
Needless to say the Ping golf set did a world of good to my handicap and I won a lot of money bettng on the golf course.
Circa 2006 AD: Now as I write
My daughter is located in San Francisco and my son in law to be(SILTB) is located in Atlanta.
The SILTB made a polite offer to bring us some gifts, on his visit to India which will culminate in a Wedding this summer.
Now humility is a virtue that I have yet to imbibe. Politeness in such situations does not help much. Again, I thanked him profusely for his offer and told him I will get back to him via e-mail. I made a short list of things I needed and did not have the resources to buy.
I informed him that my wife positively needed a single golf club, Cleveland Driver, Launcher series. Pretty expensive here in India. As for me, I could do with an entry level Apple Ipod, a motorcycle riding armoured Jacket and a cheap entry level Laptop. The Laptop was essential because I am planning to write a book.
Now SILTB knows that I am a writer at MouthShut and has complimented me many times over for my writing skills. *He knows that I am a musically inclined fella. He also knows that my wife is a Champion Golfer. The$ 315/- armored riding jacket is asafety issue ** for my motorcycle riding expedition. In short, SILTB is aware of everything.
THE IF’S AND BUT’S OF GIFTING
A week later, I got a call from my daughter in San Francisco, that my demands were way too much! And that I needed to behave in a manner that is politically correct with SILTB. Just because he made an offer out of courtesy, I need to be judicious and polite and not appear to be like some gold digger!
I told her* in exchange for gifting my precious daughter to SILTB, a Laptop, an Ipod, a single Golf Club and a Riding jacket was tuppence!
She said leave the Laptop and the Jacket for her to deal with. I said, but for you I have a separate list. She would hear none of that!
Last night she mailed me feebly, “Is the Laptop absolutely necessary? The riding jacket is definitely out. Funds wise I am down to the wire!”
I was in a forgiving mood, after all she was my daughter, after all greed is man’s worst enemy, and I mailed back a sweet note:
“No, not necessary but maybe you could look at garage sales over the week end and find a nice used laptop!”
What’s in it for Me?
So now at the end of it all, come April 2006. I will have an iPod, my wife a Cleveland Driver, a$ 100/- leather riding jacket for me
and my SILTB says * Uncle, don’t worry, we are working on the Laptop too!
God in Heaven is merciful. I always thank him for the wonderful, generous children that He has gifted us, the SILTB tops the list. Our children are our treasure, our future, they will always be for us and we for them. Amen.
Mariner2
