When Easy Gifts Mean Everything

Growing up there was a prevailing joke on the sitcom shows that were in reruns about giving your father a tie as a gift for any occasion like Father’s Day, Christmas or their birthday. Watching shows like Father Knows Best, My Three Sons, & Leave it to Beaver made it seem like the thing to do.
 
In my world, the coffee cup is the new tie. Without fail, when it comes to needing to get dear old dad a gift, they are going with the tried-and-true appeal of the coffee mug! I have funny mugs, thoughtful mugs, cool looking mugs, and my nostalgic mugs.
 
STARTING THE DAY RIGHT
The reality is that I DO love coffee cups! In my house, I typically get up first, make the coffee, and then I open the cabinet door with our collection of coffee cups stacked on top of each other spilling across the shelf. Behold!!!! It’s like a halo of light surrounds the cups and angles sing in a chorus.
 
Which cups will I choose? Which cups will be so lucky to be chosen on this day to serve our coffee.
 
I am 100% serious!
 
I don’t just reach for the nearest cup. I put time in selecting the right cups for me and my wife. I consider my mindset at the time and maybe the mindset I need to have for the day ahead. Maybe I think about what is happening that day… if the Rams are playing, maybe I bring out my St. Louis Rams mug. Is it the time of year that I need to consider the holiday or the season. Maybe I want to be funny or sarcastic so I set out the ones that might make your mom blush. Maybe I want to set the tone with a John Wayne cup.  It all plays a role in my selection process. 
 
THE DILEMMA
I’m writing about this for a couple of reasons: First, I wanted to share my love of the coffee cups gifts as I figured others could relate. Second, I need help on what to do.
 
My challenge is what do I do with all the cups? I don’t have the extra cabinet space that it would require to keep them all ready to go.
 
Do I put them into storage and when I pass, my kids can go through them and laugh or cry depending upon the memories that they elicit? Will they not have a clue because to them it was just a gift, something to give a guy that is easy to please? Will they even remember when or why they gave it to me or comprehend the joy and love that each one of those gifts meant to me?
 
Again, the question I need answered… what do I do with all my coffee cups? Can I give them to Good Will for others to enjoy? Store them? Purchase a curio cabinet to display them proudly and annoy any house guest who makes the mistake of asking about them which results in me sharing the backstories?
 
ASKING FOR HELP
My kids will already have their hands full dealing with my John Wayne collection and about 70 other collections that my amateur hoarder status has led to a full basement.
 
I would be interested to hear your thoughts or your experiences working through this type of dilemma. What has worked for you? What disasters happened? If you had to do it over, what would you do?
 
For me personally the gift is more than a gift. The gift is a memory that drives emotions that I carry with me Beyond Today.

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