The story of Sherry’s Valentine’s Day gift began last month with an e-mail titled “OMG I need this for my birthday” that contained a link to a white ceramic rhino from Z Gallerie. Her birthday is in March and I already had plans for that, so at first I thought the rhino would make the perfect Valentine’s Day gift. Unfortunately, the rhino was out of stock and Z Gallerie couldn’t guarantee it would arrive by February 14.
Sherry had actually been searching for a white ceramic animal like this rhino for at least a year, ever since she first saw a similar piece in a room designed by Nate Berkus. She never imagined the high-end version might someday be made more widely available by a retailer like Z Gallerie. Because I knew how much she wanted a ceramic rhino, I pre-ordered the Z Gallerie version and offered it to my sister Emily to give Sherry for her March birthday.
My plan didn’t go smoothly. I’m not a great liar, and Sherry quickly guessed I’d ordered the rhino. She became convinced it was meant for Valentine’s Day and even gushed to Emily about the beautiful ceramic rhino she expected to receive. Emily found the situation amusing, but I started to worry. The rhino did arrive at my office last week, yet Emily wasn’t planning to give it to Sherry until March. To make matters worse, the actual Valentine’s gift I gave Sherry that day was practical rather than romantic, so I feared she’d be disappointed.
On Saturday morning, holding the real Valentine’s present behind my back, I offered Sherry one last partial truth: “I ordered your rhino, but it didn’t arrive in time. You’ll get it for your birthday.” Then I handed her our digital camera fitted with a new Eye-Fi wireless SD memory card. It wasn’t the rhino, but the Eye-Fi upgrade lets the camera upload photos automatically and wirelessly, which is a small time-saver that makes blogging easier and faster. Sherry loved it. Seeing her excitement was a relief — the camera Gift kept her from dwelling on the missing ceramic rhino while also being genuinely useful for her blog workflow.
That evening we went to Emily’s house for a planned Valentine’s Day party. What Sherry didn’t know was that her horned ceramic companion was waiting there. Emily and I agreed it would be mean to keep the gift hidden for another month, so Emily decided to give Sherry her birthday present early — but not without a little mischief.
When we arrived, Emily quietly pointed out framed photos around her living room. Each photo showed staged moments of her kids and others posing with the rhino. We expected Sherry — usually very observant — to notice right away, but she didn’t. For nearly an hour she admired the photos, even commenting on a picture of our niece Olivia reading to the rhino without spotting the actual ceramic animal sitting nearby. Finally we prompted her: “Sherry, did you look closely at all the new pictures?” Only then did she put the pieces together.
Needless to say, she was thrilled. The little scavenger hunt ended with a joyful reunion between Sherry and her long-desired ceramic rhino. I was relieved that I no longer had to keep secrets for another month and that, with Emily’s help, I hadn’t disappointed her on Valentine’s Day. The rhino now sits happily in our living room, exactly where a cherished decorative piece belongs.
All in all, it was a very happy Valentine’s Day — a little schemed, but heartfelt. The combination of a thoughtful practical gift (the Eye-Fi-enabled camera) and the surprise of the ceramic rhino made for a memorable holiday. If you’ve ever orchestrated a similarly elaborate surprise or had a Valentine’s gift go unexpectedly well (or terribly), I’d love to hear your story.
Images courtesy of Z Gallerie and Eye Fi.