I am an uninspired gift-giver at the best of times. If I gave you a little purse hand-knitted by my daughter for Christmas last year, odds are that by next Christmas I’ll have forgotten all about it, and you’ll get the same thing again, though perhaps in a different color.
Graduations are doubly hard: what to give, what to give, especially if you haven’t been in daily contact with the graduate since he or she was . . . oh, I don’t know. Born?
So it is with some enthusiasm that I’ve been reading the list of frugal-but-creative graduation gifts at Like Merchant Ships. These gifts aren’t religious themselves, necessarily, but this blog’s mission is. As Meredith puts it:
Like Merchant Ships is a blog about saving money—and doing it with style. Like the Proverbial 31 woman, I don’t mind going the extra mile for my family.
In fact, I consider it a job. Smart shopping—and God’s grace—have enabled me to stay home with 3 kids.
So what a list of frugal-and-practical graduation gifts really speaks to is the larger vision, shared by a lot of us, of figuring out ways to be present for our children on a full-time basis, because that’s what God has called us to do, and still survive financially.
Meanwhile, I’ve been stewing over what to get for a couple of graduates in my life, and now I have a clue.
[Rating: 90/100]
via my favorite blogger, the Deputy Headmistress
You have a decision to make: double or nothing.
For this week only, a generous supporter has offered to fully match all new and increased donations to First Things up to $60,000.
In other words, your gift of $50 unlocks $100 for First Things, your gift of $100 unlocks $200, and so on, up to a total of $120,000. But if you don’t give, nothing.
So what will it be, dear reader: double, or nothing?
Make your year-end gift go twice as far for First Things by giving now.
