The Journal

Why a secondhand gift can say the most

Some of the most moving gifts I have ever given were not new, and that is exactly why they worked.

We are often taught that a good gift must be shiny and new. But a gift with a past has something new things cannot offer: a story. A vintage postcard of someone's hometown, a record from the year they were born, a set of old letters written a century ago.

The trick is to search with intention. Sites like eBay and Vinted are treasure chests if you know what to look for. Type in their birth year, their favourite team, the town where they grew up, and see what appears.

Explain gently, when you give it, why you chose it. Most people are deeply touched to be handed a piece of history that connects to their own.

Whose story is sitting in a drawer somewhere, waiting to become a gift?