The Perfect Gift

The Perfect Gift

Christmas is my favorite time of the year. It’s a magical time filled with love, laughter, hugs, gifts and most of all SNOW! My least favorite thing about Christmas is the gift shopping because finding the perfect gifts for your loves one can be challenging. We all want our loved ones to tear open their present and see the look of excitement and pure joy when they open their gift. We never want to see a disappointed frown or disinterested look when they see their gift. That’s why I’m slightly stress while driving to the mall and thinking about the perfect gift to give to my love.

I turned the radio on to ease my mind and This Christmas filled my car. I hummed along as I drove to the mall on the icy roads. The melody was calming to my nerves as my thoughts drifted to the week that was approaching. Only one more week until Christmas. I was beyond excited and nervous because this is the first year I will be spending Christmas with my fiancé and his family. Even though we had been together for years we rarely spent holidays with each other’s family besides the Fourth of July. I finally get to meet his entire family and learn more about him. I’ve meet his mom, dad, and brother but not his grandparents and aunts and so on. Hopefully everyone likes me as much as his mom does. She always told me I was like the daughter she never had. His mom and I are so close we even go out to eat once a week.

I pulled into the heavily congested mall parking lot eager to get this shopping excursion over with as soon as possible. A snowflake tickled my nose as I stepped out of the car. It was always beautiful outdoors in the wintertime. Snow filled the sidewalks and hills around our small town. It looked like a magical winter wonderland outside. I smiled walking into the mall with a heavy sigh. The mall is packed to the brim but I am determined to find the perfect gift for him. He is the love of my life. He is the first boy I’ve ever kissed and the first man I’ve ever loved. Now 10 years later he’s my fiancé. My heart pounded and a smile crept upon my face while thoughts of him came flooding through my mind. His black hair, brown eyes, and pearly white smile appeared in my mind. He was perfection and deserves nothing but the best which is why I was determined to find the perfect gift.

               The mall always looked stunning at this time of year. A large white Christmas tree was in the center of the mall filled with red and gold ornaments. Christmas lights, reefs, and mistletoe's could be found throughout the entire mall. The stairs and escalator where lit up with stunning Christmas lights and I couldn’t help but to gasp at the beauty of it all. The decorations reminded me of one of my favorite childhood memories; riding throughout many neighborhoods with my Aunt and sister to gaze at the dazzling Christmas lights that were hung so nicely. We would ride around town for hours looking at lights every year during Christmas. My aunt would fill her car with snacks and we would want to stay out all night looking at all of the lights.

               “What is the perfect gift got the perfect guy,” I pondered as I walked into a less populated shoe store near the front entrance of the mall. So many shoes with vibrant colors filled the wall and racks in the store. I skimmed through dress shoes, tennis shoes, running shoes, and boots but none of those seemed right for him. I walked around the store once more just in case I missed something he might love. As the store became crowded I decided to venture out into the wilderness hoping to find the perfect gift. I walked up and down the crowded mall for what seem like hours until I stumbled upon a quaint little watch store in the corner of the mall on the second floor.

               Watches reminded me of the story he used to tell me as we were kids on the playground. His grandfather owned a small watch store for many years. Every summer he would go to Ireland to visit his grandfather and help around the store. His grandfather taught him how to fix broken watches and clocks. That’s when his love for watches began. He even started collecting watches as a child. He would take them apart and put them back together again. A hobby of his he still does from time to time.

               “A watch would be a perfect gift for him”, I thought happily as I walked around the store. The watch store had many watches; such as gold, rose-gold, silver, and bronze. I was in awe at his collection of watches. “Would you like a warm cookie,” the shop owner asked with a smile on his face, “My wife just made them and dropped them off for my customer.” I looked down at the plate filled with chocolate chip cookies and couldn’t help but to smile. My little sister and I would always make chocolate chip cookies and leave them on the fire place for Santa Claus with a glass of milk of course. Every Christmas morning we would come downstairs to find a half drunken glass of milk and an empty plate where the cookies once lay. “I would love a cookie. Thank you! ,” I exclaimed while grabbing a cookie and continued to browse the beautiful watch collection.

               I gasped as a rose-gold watch caught my attention. This is something he would love because on Valentine’s Day he gave me a rose-gold heart necklace and he told me he loved rose-gold jewelry. “Excuse me, sir,” I motioned for the shop owner as he just finished up with another customer. “Yes,” he scurried over quickly, “What can I help you with?” I pointed at the watch that caught my attention and said, “I would like to buy this watch. I would also like the back of the watch to be engraved with the following: Always & Forever – Love A.M.”  He grabbed the watch from the case and with a smile replied, “Yes of course, my dear. Come back in forty-five minutes and I will have the watch engraved and gift wrapped for you. What color would you like the gift box and bow to be?” I sighed with relief, “Thank you, I would like a red box and white bow please.” I was surprised and elated he could have the watch ready so soon. “How much will it be,” I questioned as we headed toward the register. “Let’s see,” the shop owner said while punching keys on the register, “this particular watch is on sale; therefore you’re total will be $75 dollars.” I reached into my purse for the money and handed it to the shop owner and responded, “I will be back shortly.” He smiled and with a wave he was off working away at the perfect Christmas gift. The way he worked reminded me of a busy elf in Santa’s workshop.

45 minutes later…

               After five laps around the mall and one hot caramel macchiato with a shot of espresso the wait was finally over. I couldn’t wait to see the gift for my finance. I giddily walked back to into the store just in time to see the shop owner pull out a red gift box and a white bow. “I’m back,” I smiled warmly. “Just in time,” the store owner said and grabbed the small black leather box that was on the counter. He opened the box and in it was the watch. It glistened and shined in the dim store lighting. “Wow”, I muttered in awe at the beauty of the watch. I picked up the watch, turned it over, and traced my fingers across the engraving. “It’s perfect, you did an amazing job”, I exclaimed placing the watch back in the box, “I love it and so will my fiancé.” The shop owner smiled with pride and placed the small leather box into the slightly larger red gift box. “Thank you so much and I’m glad you’re impressed with my work,” he replied as he tied the white box onto the gift box. He handed me the gift box and with a smile said, “May you and yours have a Merry Christmas.” I wished him and his family the same and headed back to my car with a wide grin. I admired the beautiful gift box more once I got into the car and I just new my fiancé would love his gift. I hide the gift in my glove compartment and heading home. I couldn’t help but to chuckle to myself as I thought about how stressed I was to find a perfect gift.

By Andrea McIntyre