I am certain we have all wondered at some point in our lives: what is the greatest gift anyone can give us. We all have different views on life, different needs, different things that make us happy. But that’s what we all want in the end is to be happy.

Some may say “Money”, which you can do almost anything with, but does it give you everlasting happiness? Maybe. If you choose to look at it that way and depend on it so much. Indeed money does help us fulfill our material needs in this world and it does shape part of our happiness, there is no denying it.

What about those who say “Health”, cause without it, you won’t be able to do what you want to do in life, you may be deprived of going places or doing certain activities that would make you happy. Again I say Maybe it is true. Indeed health is a key ingredient in completing the picture of happiness. When your health is not the greatest, it can take a toll on your whole life, on your mood, on your confidence, on others around you; thus affecting you in a negative way and so having Health is a gift, because not all of us is blessed with good health.

But then when you think of “Love” and the effects it has on our lives, you may say that love is the greatest gift in our lives. You know that feeling of contentment; knowing that you are loved unconditionally, it’s like you are in heaven, walking on cloud 9 or whatever number you want it to be … Indeed love brings us joy and it fills our lives with laughter, happiness, a true feeling of bliss. Love is a key component of our lives that we cannot be complete without. Although it’s not the easiest to maintain, but yet very well needed.

Having explored more than one blessing in our lives, I found that the greatest gift of all in my life is “Time”. To receive time and to give time. Time is not something substantial, it is not something you can understand easily. It’s one of the most complicated theories for me.

You may think it’s really easy … What’s so difficult about giving your time to someone? But it is. Think about it. In order to be able to give your time to people in your life among all the activities that some you must do and some you choose to do. You may have plenty of commitments, obligations, duties, responsibilities, etc ….and to be able to get everything done and yet please everyone around you and make them happy. Now that’s one of the toughest things ever to maintain. You will not always be able to do it perfectly. You will fall short at times and that is ok because we are humans. We miscalculate at times, things out of our control may happen and mess up our plans; nothing is written in stone.

So when someone makes time in their busy life to spend it with me. I cherish that person because they are blessing me with a great gift. Their time is valuable, yet they are willing to give it to me. How precious is that? And I don’t believe everyone understands this concept. Not everyone sees time as the greatest gift, or else we would have no problems in this world. It depends on the perception and the priorities of every person.

Some may believe they must present you with an expensive gift, that’s how they show they care about you. Some may make a home-made card or a low-budget personalized gift and they feel that it will be appreciated because of the effort they made to make you feel special. Some may present you with a very touching card that says exactly how they feel. Some may make you your favorite dish. Some may take you out to give you a memorable and fun time. Some may give you money to buy whatever you need or want. Some may be physically away from you but make the effort to call you or message you to tell you how much you are thought of and loved. Some may just give you their time. All those things and more, things that people who truly care about you will do for you. They all thought of you, they all made time out of their busy lives to make you happy, to put a smile, to let you know they love you …. And all in different methods … In the way that fits each personality and level of closeness. All that I appreciate. All that I cherish dearly. All the efforts made, all the time that was given to make me happy.

Then there are those who care but allow life and all its troubles to give them the excuse not to make the extra effort and give a little bit of their time. There are those who allow their busy lifestyle to take over and decide for them what can be done and what can’t. There are also those whose priorities changed as their lives changed and now their time is not something they are willing to give because it has already been allocated to another priority. There are those who stopped caring. There are those who were probably taking you for granted and you only mattered when you were around, when you were more useful. Sadly, there are those who never cared to begin with, they just pretended for a while and now the true colors come out.

All of these things I experienced recently. All of those lessons I learned the hard way. The good thing is that I got to open my eyes and see who really gives a damn about me. Who is real and who is fake. Who gives me their time and gladly change their life around to please me. Who is willing to move mountains to see me. Who loves me truly from their heart and willing to get me the moon and the stars (figuratively speaking).

This is the perfect time for me to face reality and see it for what it really is. I have to say I was disappointed even hurt at certain times. It’s not because people didn’t make the time, it’s because when it was my turn, I made the time, I changed my life around, I gave my heart, and I moved mountains to show I cared whether in a small-scale or big one. The bottom line is I learned a lesson, a valuable one. And I paid the price, or my heart paid it more than anything.

In conclusion, I reiterate that time for me is the greatest gift I can give someone, because I experienced the value of “Time” first-handed. With that said, I also know by now, who in my life deserves to have my time and who doesn’t. I would rather spend time with those who want me around and make the effort to be with me, than me making time for those who never bothered to make it for me when I needed it. A tough lesson to learn, but necessary for my growth as an individual. Instead of having bad feelings towards those who hurt me, I thank them for teaching me the lesson I needed at this time in my life. And I wish them all the best from my heart. I may get tougher, but I’m not going to turn heartless. I will remain the same ME no matter what life throws my way.