Believe it or not, I hate birthdays. First of all you keep getting older, and second you always get presents you can ’ t stand. If I could just have a nice chocolate cake all to myself, I ’ d be very happy. But no! I have received more ties, pajamas, umbrellas, and gloves than you can imagine. I keep all my unwanted gifts piled neatly in a corner of my closet. If I need one of the items, I draw from my stock, but that is a rare occurrence. The result is that my pile is quite large. One day, my Aunt Gloria called me. “ Hello, Shelley, ” she said. “ We ’ re having a surprise birthday party for cousin Stove. Will you be able to come on Thursday the 29 th at 2 p.m.? ” “ One minute, while I look at my calendar, ” I said. “ Too bad, ” I thought to myself. “ I ’ m free. I guess I ’ ll have to go. ” To Aunt Gloria, I said, “ Yes, that day looks O.K. to me. I ’ ll be there. Should I bring anything for the party? ” “ No, ” answered Aunt Gloria, “ just bring yourself . ” The morning for the party arrived. After some thought, I decided that it would be proper to bring my aunt a little gift. I thought it would please her. I had a good stock of gifts in my closet, and so I decided to rewrap one and offer it to my aunt. It was getting late by the time I got around to wrapping it. So I grabbed the first box I saw and hastily wrapped it. My relatives were all there when I arrived. They were glad to see me, and if the occasion hadn ’ t been a birthday party, I guess I would have been glad to see them. Uncle Joe told me I ’ d lost weight. “ You look wonderful, ” he said. I plowed my way through a dozen more relatives to Aunt Gloria. “ Here, ” I graciously said, holding out my gift. “ A little something for you. ” “ Oh, that ’ s very kind of you, ” said my aunt. She began to unwrap the gift. “I wonder what it could be, ” she murmured. Then she began to read a card that was enclosed, a card that I didn ’ t remember having put in. “ Dear Shelley, ” she read, “ hope you enjoy these gloves. They ’ ll keep your fingers warm in the winter. Love, Aunt Gloria. ”