In one family, a favorite humorous Christmas story involves an aging aunt whose tradition was to send each young child a card stuffed with $10. One year, in her hurry, she forgot to include the money. Each child received an empty card inscribed with the handwritten note, "Go buy yourself a present."The story is amusing because, without the accompanying $10, the note took on a completely different meaning than the aunt had intended.
Unfortunately, the story has a broader application to people in general but in an opposite way. By focusing too much on material gifts, we can easily change the meaning of Christmas in ways we never intended.