WJON Question of the Week — Most Memorable Gift You Gave?

WJON's Question of the week asked listeners, "What is the most memorable gift you gave and what unique Holiday traditions does your family have?"

And here's what Central Minnesota had to say.

-- One caller got a fruitcake from his boss, and since he didn't think anyone actually ATE fruitcake, he held onto it. A few years later, he mailed it to his sister for Christmas. And of course, she mailed it back to him for the following Christmas. And VOILA! A Christmas tradition began. In fact, our caller says he and his sister have been sending that same fruitcake back and forth for years. (And no, the caller says the fruitcake is no longer edible. We wonder if it was in the first place!)

-- Caller Mike says he remembers as a kid stringing popcorn and dried berries on string as a decoration. Then on Christmas, they would take the homemade garland out and string them in the trees for the birds.

-- Caller Lori says she found a coloring book from when she and her brother, Jesse, were little kids. She had that coloring page of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer framed and gave that to Jesse's wife. A super idea and a great way to remember we were all little once. Lori says the nieces and nephews will get the same treatment some day!

-- Mike the Tech Super Fan and his family would go to midnight mass, then go to family for some celebrating until early in the morning. Then the relatives would come over on Christmas for a meal at Mike's place. Mike also created gifts with clues to the next gift, sort of a scavenger hunt -- a great idea you might incorporate in your gift giving this year.

-- Caller Mike says he got Craftsman tools each Christmas for what he calls "The Gift that Keeps Giving." But he says a Christmas request to his grandparents are what are most memorable to him. He asked them to give him a family heirloom each Christmas so he could spend time with them, learning more about the story around the item and family history. It's always more fun to hear the stories about family heirlooms from the people directly involved.

-- Jay Caldwell says he and his family pass around gag gifts from years past. One year, Jay says he was a poor college student who felt he needed to get everyone a gift. So he brought his younger brother a box of twisty party straws from the dollar store. He says it wasn't a great gift -- but the family's gotten a lot of mileage each Christmas, teasing Jay about his gift.

-- Another caller took exception to anyone laughing at any gift. He reminded us all there are plenty of people who don't have anything, and won't have a Christmas this year.

-- Another caller says she her family -- including their seven children -- have a tradition of asking their church for the name and details of a family in need. Then they provide three meals and presents for the family. We love this idea and believe this is really the true meaning of Christmas.