This Christmas we asked writers to share the story of a gift they will never forget. Philip Hoare recounted receiving a glove puppet he named Alfie that he still owns and brings back vivid memories of his childhood; John Crace chose a vile shirt that an uncle he didn’t get on with gifted as a statement of animosity; Marina Lewycka wrote of the time a stranger on a bus gave her mother a sixpence; Chibundu Onuzo described how giving out food parcels helped her to get over her cynicism.
What is the most significant present you have ever given or received? What did it mean for the relationship between you and the person you exchanged it with? Of course, a gift needn’t be a physical object, but a kind gesture or a piece of advice. Or perhaps it may have been a gift that you actually didn’t want to receive.
Share your story of the gift that changed you.
