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Are you planning wedding or party music? One of the best presents you can give yourself is TIME.
Enough TIME to gather all your best options, think them through, and make your plan.
So here’s a tip: Begin planning as early as you can. BEFORE you feel ready to start. Don’t wait until you feel ready. You’ll NEVER feel ready.
Actually, this is good advice for planning practically anything. The best time to begin is NOW, to give yourself plenty of time to improve as you progress.
For example, say you’re planning to give a friend a present. It’s something we always do, all the time.
The best presents take time. Time for imagining, planning, assembling, and delivering.
We’re always giving presents. At holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, and all kinds of special celebrations. Right?
What can make your best presents precious? What can possibly be more precious than your time?
See what I’m driving at? It’s about TIME.
Time lost is gone forever. Same with dear friends and with some golden opportunities. TIME is the most valuable thing we have.
Even the best material stuff is usually replaceable, no matter how much value some people assign to it. No matter how much merchants hype their annual selling frenzy. But you can control your buying frenzy, right?
So to my way of thinking, the best, most precious and cherished present you can give isn’t the thing, itself, but the time you invest in preparing it. Not just at the traditional holiday seasons. It’s always the season to give a present.
Occasionally the Magnolia Jazz Band donates our time to entertain at benefit events. Don’t you do likewise? Don’t we all? Let me urge you to pause now and consider how you might give your time to make your best gifts even more precious.
Skip the flat-screen TV, the new shoes, or the iPad for now, and instead share some time — a few hours or days or weeks of deep sincere conversations, help, excitement, and companionship. Skip the baggage and love your friends.
Here’s an example. My wife, Bunch, and I stay pretty busy most of the time. In between fits of hard work, we relax pretty hard. Helps us stay as sane as we are. Hmmmm…
Every so often we give each other a day off together. This one is our annual “company party”. It usually begins with a little casual touring, exploring the San Francisco Bay Area. Next an early dinner at a sentimental favorite restaurant.
Finally, something special. Here we are inside the War Memorial Opera House, recently attending the SF Ballet’s “The Nutcracker”. Music! Dancing! What a spectacle! And what a wonderful time together! These are the best days.
Bunch and I appreciate the time we give each other, and you might find our example satisfying for yourself, as well. Give yourself TIME.
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Meanwhile, the Magnolia Jazz Band entertains at weddings and parties throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. If you are ever nearby, you’ll love catching us in action, seeing and hearing us create a great mood.
How can I help you? Call 408-245-9120 or use Robbie@MagnoliaJazz.com. Planning a celebration? Ask about our availability.
LOVE the gift of time Robbie. I am a new Grand Mother and in contemplating how to gift my grand daughter I decided that time and wonderful experiences are what I want to be remembered for.
This year as she is a bit to young to remember an event, I made her (via apple photos) an abc book with pictures of her whole family by letter…she’ll be able to learn surrounded by family. She’ll always have this book.
Thanks for the reminder!
Hi Irene. Thanks for your comment. What a wonderful gift! A little ingenuity + your time + iPhoto = a great treasure! Your granddaughter may not always remember your little book, but I’m sure she’ll FOREVER be grateful that you helped her learn to read.
I like the idea of giving yourself the gift of time. I rarely do that. But doing so gives you time and space to be a better person, partner and mom. In addition, it gives you time with those you love. Thanks for the inspiration!
Debbie Goldberg
http://www.FreshBrothers.Wordpress.com
Hi Debbie, thanks for your comment. Glad like you like the idea of giving your time to yourself and to others. Sounds like you’ll need to make an appointment with yourself. Couldn’t hurt. Please let me know how it works out. Happy holidays!
Thank you for sharing that and prompting us to stop for a moment and think about what is really important at this time of year.
Julie Labes, the…Fierce over 50 feels much younger, point and click junkie, loves to travel, does not use a jogging stroller, and before you ask, this is NOT my granddaughter..Woman
…at this time of the year? Thanks for your comment, Julie. Surely you don’t mean we can soon go back to being crass. Reminds me of humorist Tom Lehrer’s song about “National Brotherhood Week”, where he sang about thank goodness it doesn’t last all year.
My husband and I are giving each other a night out together. The thought of buying stuff seemed so pointless, especially for our first Christmas together. We haven’t stepped foot in a mall. I’m glad there are other like-minded folks out there.
Hi Kristin,
Thanks, and best wishes for the first Christmas with your husband. A night out sounds like an excellent way to celebrate, but I wonder what in the world will you allow yourself to eat when you’re not home.
This is a message we can’t hear enough! My husband and I rarely buy each other stuff, but we are well aware of others in the family who want more and more… It is always good to be reminded of the beauty of time as a gift.
Judy Stone-Goldman
The Reflective Writer
Thanks, Judy. I’m glad you enjoyed my article — sounds like I’ve been preaching to the choir in your case. Happy holidays!
What my boyfriend wants the most for Christmas is to have his favorite pairs of jeans patched. He’s been asking for a while but since I’m a professional sewer/mender/embroider/artist – I’m always too busy doing that kind of work as my day job. It takes a lot of time to mend, but that will be one of his main gifts. I’ll patch while he practices his guitar. I’m sure it will be beautiful. Thanks for your post.
What a lovely reminder that, especially in this busy and stressful world we live in. The best gift I can imagine from my husband this year would be for him to arrange to take me away for a weekend somewhere! He has done that in the past, not as a Christmas present, but just as a random act of love. However, it has been too long now since that has happened! I may print this article out and leave it hanging around his desk! I agree that giving of our time is the best way to really show someone that we care about them and want to be near them. It sounds as though you and your wife have a wonderful relationship!
Hi Donna,
Thanks in advance for using my article on your husband — I hope it’s effective, and you get what you want. When I wrote the piece, I’d hope it would be useful, but I hadn’t thought of this! Let me know how it works. We may be discovering yet another benefit of blogging.
Robbie – time is especially important to me now since I have a junior in High School and know that our time together (at the level it is now) is limited. So, when she is not hanging out with friends, my husband and I try to give her as much time as possible.
Pat Zahn, Photo Solutions Superhero
Good idea, Pat. I have no daughter, and so no experience with teen-age girls (though I used to know a few when I was younger), but I suspect your daughter is in the midst of discovering herself, and will cherish the memories of the times you spend together.
Nice Robbie- I so love the idea of sharing yourself with someone as a gift. People say they don’t have enough time, but that is always their choice. So make time and share it with yourself and someone else!
Thanks, Candace, “Sharing yourself” has a nice ring to it. Good memorable phrase. Reminds me of the year one of my wife’s Christmas presents from me was a hand-made coupon book. Lots of coupons which I illustrated, redeemable anytime & any number of times, for things like “Let me take you for an afternoon walk on the beach” and “Let me bring you breakfast in bed”. I won lots of points that year.
Robbie, what a lovely thought to give yourself and your time to others. I totally agree that this is so much important than all the material things. Thanks for sharing this with us.
Fiona Stolze
http://fionastolze.wordpress.com
Thanks, Fiona. I’m wondering if you’re working on any special “wintertime” or “Christmas” projects. If so, they might be the subject of your next blog.
We always try to make time for us as a family and as a couple but even more so at Christmas as we are so far away from extended family. I also try to give my time to the AUpairs on my group who are also so far away from their homes. Lovely reminder, thanks.
Louise Edington
Facing Fears and Frontiers Over Fifty
http://louiseedington.com
Yep — saw the skiing photos on Facebook, and it looked like a good time for all. Except for me. I used to live in Buffalo, NY, and several winters there gave me all the snow I’ll need for the rest of my life, thank you very much.
After the shoveling I had to do today I might agree with you – lol
I do like our idea and agree, time is our most valuable asset. I am going to try to share some time with my loved ones and “gifts” this year; or maybe, for my mom friends, take their kids and give them some extra time on their own!
Lisa Vitale
http://www.lisawifemom.wordpress.com
Hmmm… a nice idea might be to organize a “girls night out” for your mom friends, and have your family take care of all their kids. Sounds like fun! Oh, maybe you weren’t thinking of anything like this.
This is so true.
And it is more than time, I think; it is paying attention.
Simone Weil said “Absolute attention is prayer.”
So as we give time let us give undivided attention.
Agreed! Thanks for adding to the thought — surely, the QUALITY of our time must count, too.
Such a nice and sweet story to be able to spend quality time with our spouse, mine is deployed since September will be out for 6 months. Our anniversary was 12/21 and we got to talk with each other for a few minutes. We sure appreciate the times we have spent together and look forward to being together again and really spending quality time with one another.
Lisa Ann Landry
Vibrating Positive Energy to Unleash the Genie in All
http://www.imagedevelopmentgroup.com/
Thanks, Lisa. Sounds like your time is especially precious right now, and for the next few months. Just imagine how nice your reunion will be! BTW, I’m glad to finally hear from you and hope to talk with you again soon.