Oprah’s Favorite Priceless Things
You know something’s up when Oprah starts economizing.
It took until early December for National Bureau of Economic Research to officially call it a recession, but really, we’ve known for a while now. Things are different this year. You can see signs of the times everywhere. It’s in the wording of of the ads on TV, not to mention the prices. It’s on the cover of every magazine and this year, even Oprah’s famous Favorite Things list bears the scars.
Over the past six years Oprah and her staff have put together an extravagant list of Oprah’s Favorite Things. In the past the list has included everything from organic pears to fancy cameras to high end robes and PJs. This year the list was part of the November 26th broadcast, “The Thriftiest Christmas Ever” and heralded as Oprah’s Favorite Things… with a twist!
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In place of all the luxury items, this year Oprah brought together a list of gift ideas that barely cost a thing. Handmade and heart-felt gifts made the list this year – no $3000 fridges or $800 camcorders. If things are sluggish enough that watching other people get extravagant gifts has lost its charm this may be a surer sign than anything the financial gurus can tell us.
In explaining the change to the list on her site, Oprah’s writers had this to say:
Oprah has received many gifts over the years, but she says the gift that means the most to her is one that cost the least. “A few years ago at my 50th Happy Birthday luncheon, my friends wrote me heartfelt notes that they then placed inside this silver box,” Oprah says. “The words from your heart mean more to people than anything you can buy.” – Oprah.com
We’ve been told for years that it’s the thought that counts. Maybe now that Oprah has said it we’ll finally start to believe it.
In talking with my mother-in-law we came up with an idea we’d like to look into for next year. We feel so blessed to have our needs met during this difficult financial time, we thought we would challenge our family members not to buy anything new for each other next year but rather to give something away. We’ll each draw a name and then choose something of our own to pass on to that person. Giving a gift is one thing but giving up your own possession so that someone else can enjoy it would be a new challenge for us. I can imagine it would mean a great deal to each of us as we opened the hand-picked gift our family member has chosen to give up for us.
When I saw the summary abou Oprah, I too must admit that I was at first dismayed. But then I read further, and was encouraged by the article. I believe that we as Believers must not be so dogmatic in our views, but let God have His way. We know that Jesus is the only way to the Father, so I believe that we must let go of our biases, and lovingly show others the Way.
I pray for Oprah as God has said we should pray for all men. The influence she can have on people if she would give her heart to the Lord will be phenomenal.She does have some very good programs especially the ones relating to keeping healthy
I don’t subscribe to Oprah’s spiritual beliefs, but I acknowledge the fact that she has a big influence in our culture and around the world. I think it’s smart that she’s addressed the difficult economic times that is affecting many people…it at least makes her seem sympathetic, even if she herself is swimming in her millions.
HI Gail,
I am sorry to hear that you were disappointed by something that you saw on our site. This blog post makes no mention of Oprah’s spiritual beliefs. Her list of gifts has been a cultural staple for years now and I found it interesting that what is usually an extravagant list reflected the economics the rest of the country is facing. It’s hard to imagine hard economic times penetrating into the world of the very rich. I know that it probably doesn’t mean that Oprah is tightening her belt, but I appreciated that she noticed that many other people are.
It bothers me that you would have stuff on here about OPRAH, she believes that we live more than one life on earth and that there are many paths to God. Sorry, I don’t appreciate seeing her stuff on a christian site.