cost.
On Sunday our pastor read from 2 Samuel, in which Araunah says to God, "I would not make an offering that cost me nothing." The story shed light on the true meaning of any kind of gift - someone gives up something for the sake of another. This is why the idea of re-gifting has such shameful connotations in our society. It's not that you didn't appreciate what was given to you, but that you've sacrificed nothing in order to give a gift. It's easy, convenient, and superficial - if anyone can do it for free, it means very little. My husband loves Henry David Thoreau, and we have adopted one of his adages as a guiding principle: "The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it." The most important and valuable choices can cost a great deal of life, and the trick is knowing which ones are worth it. A cost I willingly absorb is the cost of keeping in touch - really keeping in touch - with extended family and far-away friends. I a...