The Gift of the Magi

French author Marcel Proust once made an observation on the subject of wisdom. He wrote, “We don't receive wisdom; we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take us or spare us.” A person’s knowledge of the workings of the world and the nature of life comes mainly from experience, not from a textbook or lecture in school. Often, however, the lessons learned through experience are often harsh because …showed first 75 words of 597 total…

…showed last 75 words of 597 total…are wisest.” Our independent society today, often preoccupied with individualistic ideals and “looking out for oneself”, considers wisdom to be a quality with which one outsmarts the rest of the world and survives in a “dog-eat-dog” climate. “The Gift of the Magi” illustrates a wisdom that is seen differently. Its success is not determined by the well-being and happiness of the individual, but the happiness of another, and the full expression of one’s love.