All good things are wild and free

This whole idea that this is "no free gift" really bothers me. Who says gifts have to be tangible? The greatest gift I've ever received was my nephew, is he not a gift? Or another that I hold nearly as dear was simple guidance on my first camping trip...these are gifts right? If you want to get right down to the nitty gritty then sure, these things cost something, whether it be 10 hours of labor or a considerable amount of patience.

As far as the tangible gifts go, I do agree that the majority of people who give gifts are only doing it on certain religious holidays they probably never acknowledge any other time of the year, such as christmas or easter. And this is sad. I personally could not care less about such holidays. They are one of america's lovely ways it earns a considerable amount of money every year by convincing ignorant citizens they must buy something. Some stores are only open for the christmas season which can drag in so much money it need not be open year round. I'm guilty also of giving into this unreasonable holiday, but I like to think that I don't buy into as much as everyone else does. It's during these holidays that people give and expect to be given to. But who likes the dreadful feeling that they must get something for someone, or even who they should get something for just because the other person will probably buy something for them?

I think we as a people need to not focus so much on religious holidays to give gifts, but instead, if we're going to give gifts have it be only out of the intention to see a smile on the face of someone we care about. I also think we should be giving more gifts of meaning, maybe gifts that some people don't consider gifts at all, just acts of kindness... as Thoreau once said, "all good things are wild and free".

No Gift is Free

In our present day society there exists a certain amount of expectation placed the idea of "gifts". For the majority of the time, gifts are expected to be given or received. There are the cases of birthdays, holidays, and personal celebrations, which are preconceived and reciprocal. If you give someone a present for their birthday, you might expect one back when your time comes around. There are also the cases of gift giving that are completely spontaneous, but quite often gifts act like bribery specimens.
I don't think that there is such thing as a "free gift". There is always some ulterior motive other than the fronted generosity. For example, when companies give out "free gifts", more often than not they are trying to spread free advertising. In many instances, people use gifts, both big and small, in order to get other people to reciprocate their generosity by helping them out in one way or another. Political lobbyists would be a prime example of this type of gift giving.
In my own experiences growing up in a Chinese family, I celebrated Chinese New Year where I would receive red packets of money call hong bao's as gifts from all the adults. When I was younger, I did not understand the dynamics placed on the gift giving. When I got older I began to understand that it was just a way for the older generation to ensure that they are taken care of when they age. I don't mean to imply that there is always this overbearing negative connotation to gift giving, but simply, that no gift is truely free.