Published on 12, July, 2020
Whenever I stock up on Christmas cards, I like to purchase a selection featuring different images that appeal to me in some way. When it comes time for me to write out my cards, I will then attempt to choose a card featuring an image that I think the recipient will like most.
A few weeks ago, I happened to be in the vicinity of a greeting card shop that I usually purchase my Christmas cards from. Remembering that my supply of Christmas cards at home wouldn't be sufficient to see me through this Christmas, and not knowing when I might next visit my town centre, I considered it wise to stock up.
In recent days, I have been thinking that I must get my Christmas cards written and posted, to avoid leaving them until the last minute and then pannicking. I know people say it is the thought that counts, but I dislike it when I am on the receiving end of greeting cards that arrive after the event.
Anyway, I have been looking at my packs of Christmas cards feeling thoroughly indecisive. The rational part of my brain is telling me that Aunty so-and-so probably won't care whether she receives a card featuring a robin, deer, or a colony of penguins. It strikes me as ridiculous that I feel unable to select just any old card at random.
Is it just me, or does anyone else experience the same kind of indecision with choosing greeting cards for people?
My great aunt hated wasting things and would reuse greetings cards she'd received by scribbling out the original sender's message and writing her own in it. She would also reuse the original envelope by turning it inside out and sticking it back together again
I am sure the friend of one of my grandmothers did something similar, back in the days before 'recycling' and 'upcycling' became a part of everyday vocabulary.