For companies that make attractive colored rolls, Christmas wrapping paper is a booming business. It's not like there were not many types in the past. The winter scene of Santa Claus, his elves or reindeer and evergreen trees is almost the limit. Now, every holiday theme imaginable has an endless supply of paper. For a more elegant and elegant appearance, some people abandon Santa Claus and Rudolph because the smooth luster of paper is very similar to that of tin foil.

Once, I joined the Kool-Aid drinker and asked us to have special wrapping paper. I think it’s popular to use the most expensive and luxurious paper I can find. The same goes for bows and other decorations on beautifully packaged gifts. Then one Christmas, I woke up from a coma caused by Kool-Aid and realized that I often spent more money on packaging than gifts.

When common sense finally comes into play, we are usually surprised at how easy we are to be fooled, how easy we really are to be deceived. Even if wrapping paper is not the main focus of TV or magazine advertising, we can't help but pay attention to what's under the tree. Have you ever seen a gift without a ribbon or bow in a random package? Have you ever seen a tree light that doesn't flicker when it shines on it? No, of course not. Our eyes are peeking into the boxes around or under the ornately decorated trees, and we are very interested in what they contain.

We are very aware that those boxes are empty. They are nothing more than props, but they effectively tell us that our gifts should look spectacular. No one wants to give gifts wrapped in cheap paper. I think children don't care, but adults do. I know this is a general statement, not in all cases, but please consider it. Even if the wrapping paper is rejected for holiday packages, it must be of the highest specification. If the gift weighs more than one ounce, the handle and bottom of the cheap bag will be degummed. I find it difficult.

So what should one do to solve the gift packaging problem​​? Well, as usual, I don't know, but I will try it out through memories and some suggestions. When I was 30, I received a Christmas gift wrapped in a page from the Detroit phone book. The man in my life was a hungry artist. He can hardly afford gifts, let alone a roll of exotic wrapping paper as a walnut-sized gift.

A 14-carat golden pinky ring engraved with our initials in Greek is stuck in a small box wrapped in yellow pages. Does this bother me? No. Long after I traded one artist for another, I kept wearing that ring. The next guy is much older and calls himself a poet. My gift that year was wrapped in Shakespeare’s sonnet 18. It was torn from a book that was probably borrowed from the library and never returned to the library.

Over the years, my gifts have been wrapped in lunch bags, old socks, white castle napkins, shoe box tissues and empty Kool-Aid envelopes. When I stuffed the gift in a clean cat food tin and wrapped it in Charmin, my friends cheered. I finally joined the wrapping paper rebels. Membership is free and open to everyone.

— To contact Sharon Kennedy, please send an email to sharonkennedy1947@gmail.com.