What is a perfect gift?

During the holidays and special occasions we often give gifts because it is customary to give. This Christmas, the big box stores struggling under a huge economic burden, are slashing prices and fast forwarding their sales. It makes it so easy for us to pull out our credit cards and get into the game. Gift baskets filled with chocolates, nuts and candies in attractive packaging glistening with cellophane and tinsel ribbons, just waiting for a new home! But think again…the unfortunate thing is many of these gifts somehow add to the clutter, and collect dust over the years! Many people track to the stores after Boxing Day to exchange or return unwanted gifts! Think about the unnecessary packaging that adds to the mess in the environment!

Giving from the Heart!

A few weeks ago, I asked my 20 year-old daughter what she needs for Christmas, she firmly replied that she does not need anything! Instead of giving unnecessary gifts to each other, she suggested that we contribute to United Way to give a gift hamper to a needy family. What a brilliant idea! The whole family agreed but my husband came up with a better one…instead of giving $500 to United Way, and part of it going in administrative costs and the hamper going to an unknown family, he suggested we make up the food hamper ourselves and give it to a family we know, facing dire economic circumstances. Being an advocate of gift certificates, I suggested filling a gift hamper is tricky, because we may not know exactly what they need. So instead, we all settled for a gift certificate to a local grocery store so that they can choose what they need when they need.

Why wait for Christmas?

These days, there are many who are feeling the pinch of losing jobs, facing illness or losing a loved one. Gift-giving can be all year round. I often take a home-cooked meal, a basket of fruit, a bowl of soup, to a lonely person in the neighborhood. It can be done throughout the year. So here are my criteria for a perfect gift: It is…

- A gift from the heart
- A gift of learning - ie: a course at a school board
- A gift of health -ie: a membership to a fitness/yoga/dance class
- Something the other person may really enjoy, but may not buy!
- Something that will not add to the clutter.
- Something that will not burden the environment.

Here are a few suggestions from Jini’s Ethnic Gourmet:

Gift Certificates which can be used for:

- Whole fruit baskets & platters (from $25.00)
- Cut fruit arrangements for special occasions (from $50.00)
- Theme Night Cooking Parties (from $50.00 per person)

Special offer…

The first 10 baskets ordered will get $5.00 off.

First 10 hostesses to book Theme Parties will get 10% off!

* You will have 1 year to redeem your gift certificate.

* To qualify for discount, all bookings must be made by 31 January, 2009.

Theme Night Cooking Parties!

New & exciting themes… full of fun and learning at the same time!
All you need is a minimum of 6 friends or 3 couples! The perfect gift for holidays, anniversaries or birthdays!

Sensational salads

Perfect for people who hate cooking! Learn to build a wholesome meal around a salad!

A sure way to stay healthy and slim all year round!

Learn creative tips and short cuts to make easy salads with the right touch of herbs and spices. You will love the flavors of these salads bursting with the goodness of fresh veggies, dairy, chicken, sea food, beans, sprouts, nuts and seeds.

Mexican Fiesta

Put on your sombreros and move to the Latin beat! Enjoy the bold flavours of fresh salsa, guacamole with nachos, quesadillas, tacos and more and chase it with a margarita or two! Ole!

Bollywood Bling!

Feel like an Indian princess or a Rajah for a day! Put on a saree and deck yourself with jewellery! Be entertained with Bollywood music, while you master the secrets of making a perfect curry with exotic Indian spices.

Tapas

Tapas is a Spanish term for light appetizers and tasty morsels of meats, seafood, olives, artichokes, sundried tomatoes, roasted peppers, cheese and veggies all drenched with true Mediterranean flavours… served to your guests in an easy and casual style throughout the evening. Paired with the right wines to match the food, your party is surely going to be a hit!

30 minute dinners

Ideal for young couples or singles just starting out on their own. Practical solutions to making healthy dinners with home-made goodness faster than ordering pizza or definitely better for you than frozen entrees!

I am not a compulsive Oprah fan, but lately I have been drawn to her website www.oprah.com and enrolled in the free webseminar  for the weekly lessons on A New Earth by Vancouver’s own popular spiritual writer Echhart Tolle.  What a delightful treat for the whole world to come together in a pure consciousness-raising exercise that is not limited by any religious beliefs!  As of last week, 6 million people have joined in this quest for inner peace. 

According to Eckhart Tolle, this is not an exercise that will appeal to everybody, but if some of these questions hae ever crossed your mind, you may want to check out these lessons on the Web.

• What does it feel to be fully present and in the moment?
• Can I ever stop thinking..?
• Who am I?
• Would you like to be at peace with yourself and the surroundings, inspite of everything going on in the world today?

Exploring this path may not seem as simple as this sounds,  as this is something that has been practised by Hindu gurus, Buddhist and Zen monks for over 5,000 years! There are an increasing number of Yoga schools, meditation classes and millions of dollars worth of self-help by great authors like Deepak Chopra, Wayne Dyer and many others on the subject.

It seems we are in a speeded-up world where everything is running in fast-forward mode.  So many hours lost in traffic and commuting to jobs and appointments to keep up with busy schedules. Cell phones and black berries run our lives! Many families don’t have (or don’t make the time) to unwind at the end of the day to do things like enjoy a home-cooked dinner, play with the kids or go for a walk.

These teachings come from ancient philosophies and are nothing original.   What is refreshing about Eckhart’s teachings is their simplicity and clarity of language used.  They are delivered in a medium that is right for the present moment in time!There are no mantras to chant — no fasting, religious taboos,  or rigorous spiritual practices to follow.   Just simple suggestions to bring awareness to our Inner Self and the present moment we are in by sitting down for a few moments and bringing awareness to our breath, walking in a park and observing the trees and flowers and taking a moment to enjoy their natural beauty.  Simple things that anyone can do.

Meditation is an over-used word that is flaunted around lightly.  Only someone who has genuinely tried to do it will know it is a hard thing to do, and many have tried to do it and given up!  For most of us it is just a fleeting moment or gap between each emerging new thought that constantly plague our minds.   Those who engage in meditation try to stay in that gap longer enjoying the peace of mind and rest . 

Why meditate?

There seems to be a growing awareness that it is the No.1 method to reduce stress, overcome insomnia, lower blood pressure, heart rate , pain and even has an impact on preventing cancer. Even the medical community is authenticating these benefits on a purely emotional and physical level, though spiritual teachers like Eckhart Tolle tell us  of the far-reaching benefits that come from cultivating self-awareness — the key to our spiritual growth.