Gracious¹ giving requires no special talent, nor large amounts of money. It is compounded of the heart and head acting² together to achieve the perfect means of expressing our feelings. For, as Emerson explains, "The only gift is a portion of thyself."

一份贴心的礼物并不需要非常特别，也不需要花大价钱去买。一份礼物应该包涵我们的心意，传达我们的思念。爱默生曾说过：“最好的礼物就是你自己。”

A little girl gave her mother several small boxes tied with bright ribbons. Inside each were slips of paper on which the child had printed messages such as, "Good for twoflower-bed weedings," "Good for two floor-scrubbings." She had never read Emerson, but unconsciously she put a large part of her small self into her gift.

一个小女孩给了她妈妈几个用漂亮缎带打包好的小盒子，每个盒子里都装着小女孩打印好的纸条，上面写着比如“给花坛除草两次”、“洗两次地板”之类的字。她没有读过爱默生的那句话，但是她把自己的心意放进礼物里送给了妈妈。

A young bride received a wedding present from an older woman. With it went a note, "Do not open until you and your husband have your first tiff³."

一位年轻的新娘从一位老妇人那里收到一份结婚礼物，还有一张纸条：“在你和你丈夫第一次吵架时打开。”

When there finally came a day of misunderstanding the bride remembered the package. In it she found a card box filled with her friend's favorite recipes--and a note, "You will catch more flies with honey than you will with vinegar." It was a wise woman indeed who gave of her experience with her gift.

后来有一天，他们发生了争吵，这是新娘想起了这份包裹，于是她找到它，发现里面装满了老妇人最喜欢的食谱，还附着一张纸条：“蜂蜜比醋能招来更多苍蝇(甜言蜜语比尖酸刻薄更得人心)。”这位智慧的老妇人把自己的生活经验当做礼物送给了新娘。

Family gifts should be the most satisfying because we know each member's wish andwhim. Yet how often we make the stereotyped⁴ offerings--ties, candy, or householdutensils. One man I know is planning an unusual present for his wife. When I saw him coming out of a dancing studio, he explained: "I got tired of hearing my wife complain about my dancing. It's going to be a lasting⁵ birthday present for her--my dancing well."

来自家人的礼物应该是最令人满意的了，因为我们知道每位家庭成员的喜好和念想。但是我们却经常送一些千篇一律的礼物——领带、糖果或是家用器皿。我曾见过一个男人为他的妻子准备了一份不同寻常的礼物，当他走出舞蹈培训班的时候，他告诉我：“我受够了我妻子对我舞技的抱怨，我精进的舞技对她来说可是一件永恒的礼物。”

An elderly lady on an Iowa farm wept with delight when her son in New York had a telephone installed in her house and followed it up with a weekly long-distance call.

一位住在爱荷华州的农场的老妇人喜极而泣，因为她在纽约的儿子在她家里装了部电话，而且在接下来每一周都打长途电话回家。

All gifts that contain a portion of self signify⁶ that someone has been really thinking of us. One of the most useful and thoughtful travel presents a girl ever received was currency of the country to which she was going. A friend bought her some pesos from a bank so that she would have the correct money for tips and taxi fare when she first arrived in Mexico.

所有包含了自己的心意的礼物都表示着礼物主人对我们的思念。对一位要去旅行的姑娘来说，最实用、最贴心的礼物莫过于要去的那个国家的货币了。她的一位朋友从银行兑换了一些比索给她，这样她就可以在初到墨西哥的时候有钱付小费和车费了。

Chances for heroic giving are rare, yet every day there are opportunities to give a part of yourself to someone who needs it. It may be no more than a kind word or a letter written at the right time. The important thing about any gift is the amount of yourself you put into it.

我们很少有机会送出华丽的礼物，但是我们每天都有机会把自己的一部分送给需要的人，也许是一句贴心的话语，也许是一封来得正好的信，但不管送什么礼物，最重要包含自己的心意。