What's the best gift you never received?

In the course of our lives, we have had numerous opportunities to receive gifts. American culture seems to be very gift oriented. Why, most of us received gifts before we were even born. I suppose those gifts were technically given to our parents at baby showers but, that blue baby blanket was, after all, for me so I think I am correct. Birthdays, holidays throughout the year, special life events and, of course, Christmas (the gift bonanza) are the big gift receiving times. Just think of how many gifts you have unwrapped in your lifetime.

Rollfast Cruiser

I have been blessed to receive some wonderful gifts. I remember getting my own new bicycle so I no longer had to ride my brother's hand-me-down Rollfast (although that Rollfast would probably be a collector's item today.) 

I loved receiving my first BB gun, my microscope, my wood burning kit, my own record player and several other items that every young guy growing up in the 50's and 60's yearned for. 

Honda CT70

The one gift I wanted so badly when I was growing up was a mini bike. These scaled down versions of motorcycles were very popular for running through the woods on trails or wherever the little machines could take you. The father of one of my best friends bought two Honda 70's for his family to ride. We had so much fun riding those bikes...but I never had one of my own. As a kid, this was probably the one gift I wished for but never received.

As we grow older, our gift wishes certainly change. Not too many adults are asking for train sets or Lincoln Logs or Barbie dolls (especially guys) or Lava lamps or 8-track players or Rock-em Sock-em Robots or Sea Monkeys or Chia Pets or Beanie babies or Pet Rocks or a pogo stick or a Charlie's Angels lunch box or a Rubik's cube or an Atari video console. Of course, not too many kids are asking for these things today since most of these are no longer popular or even available. Some toys seem to be timeless. Bicycles, Frisbees, skateboards, baseball gloves and dolls still show up wrapped up under the tree.

iPhone and iPad

But ask most kids today what gift they would like and they will often give you the same answer as many adults. Electronics certainly top the list of the most sought after gifts. Top of the list? iPad 2 or maybe an iPhone 4S. I don't really ever remember a time until recently when kids and adults shared a common wish list.

Some of my most cherished gifts as an adult have been those that evoked strong sentimental feelings. When our daughter Jessica was just a little thing, Carol had a mother/daughter portrait made and gave it to me for Christmas. Another time she had some old color slides of my sister and me blown up and framed. She knows how to get me emotional and now takes every opportunity to come up with some amazing gifts like that. The portrait that I had made with our son Michael was one of my reciprocal gifts to her. One of the best gifts Carol bought me was my first cordless Makita drill. I was so impressed that she bought me something that she had absolutely no familiarity with and had to do some research and check with some of my guy friends to learn about it. Carol has always come up with some of the best and most thoughtful gifts. What's the best gift I have never received as an adult? That's a tough one. I am not someone that really desires to accumulate a bunch of stuff although I have my share of man goodies.

I mentioned wanting a mini bike as a kid. You know what I have always wanted as an adult? A Honda Gold Wing motorcycle. Funny how those motorized two-wheel machines have eluded me all my life.

Honda Gold Wing

What is that one best gift that you never received? 

My piano makes me sad

Technically, I guess it is Jessica's piano. After all, she is the only one in the family (other than her husband Matt) who can actually play it. But she is now halfway around the world so...it sits in silence.

When JR first started playing piano we purchased a modestly priced "starter' piano....I think it was a Baldwin. Because our house, at the time, was on the smallish side, we really didn't have a good place to put it so it ended up in the dining room...not too bad...we could simultaneously eat and listen to Pachelbel's Canon in D. As the years went by and her playing improved, her teacher told us that we needed to invest in a better piano...one that was larger, had larger hammers that would help strengthen her hands and fingers. He recommended a Yamaha U1 piano. Now, this was a serious piano with a price to match. No matter...if we were going to invest in Jessica's piano instruction, something she was excelling in, it was very worthwhile to provide a worthy instrument. Eventually, we enlarged the house and the piano was able to find a good spot in the living room.

The house used to be filled with the sound of the various pieces of music that she was working on for her upcoming recitals. I think the sound of music in a home is just about one of the best things you can hear.

But now it is sitting in the house where we currently live and, interestingly enough...it is in what is supposed to be the dining room. But we use that room as the "music room" ...filled with guitars, amplifiers and that ebony black piano.

There is something sad about a beautiful musical instrument that doesn't have the opportunity to make music. It's not that the piano is not functional....it is in perfect condition save an occasional layer of dust. It just needs someone to play it. All by itself it is just a big chunk of wood, metal and strings. But in the hands of someone that knows how, it can produce a most beautiful sound that can bring joy to your heart or tears to your eyes. As a guitar player, I have always been envious of the piano...my guitar has only 6 strings so it can only produce a certain amount of musical fullness. That beautiful Yamaha has 88 keys with its corresponding strings. A magnificent instrument...but no one to play it.

I think some folks are like that piano. They are full of potential but, for whatever reason, don't make music (metaphorically speaking, of course.) I see it way too often in young people who somehow have become convinced that they "can't" or "never will" ________ (fill in the blank.) They need someone or something to help them "make music." Maybe it is somebody to encourage them...to tell them they can accomplish anything they set the heart and mind to. Maybe it is a teacher or mentor to inspire them. Maybe it is just a chance to show what they can do.

I know some of my sadness is that I just miss my daughter. The piano is a reminder that she is a long way away. But that piano is also a reminder that God has put a gift in all of us...maybe not music, but some special gift that He wants us to use to tell others about Him and to bring Him glory. It would be sad to just let that gift stay silent. What is the piano in your life?