As people, we are professional not only at changing things for the better but unfortunately also changing them for the worse. Sometimes we let our own ambitions shatter otherwise beautiful occasions, such as celebrating one’s birthday and sharing the joy of simply being alive. This Redditor got into such a situation when her group of friends, instead of being happy for the birthday person who got something he could really use, started looking for a possible breach of their ‘birthday gift giving constitution’, needless to say, the breach was not found.

More info: Reddit

A woman’s gift made the birthday person ecstatic, but her friends claimed she made their gifts look bad in comparison

Image credits: pxfuel (not the actual photo)

Friends accused the woman of going over the agreed $50 budget when getting an ice cream maker

Image credits: SalimaOfTheCatskills

Image credits: Joel (not the actual photo)

Image credits: SalimaOfTheCatskills

Image credits: Carol Pyles (not the actual photo)

Image credits: SalimaOfTheCatskills

The birthday person was using an old ice cream maker that often broke down in the middle of a churn

Image credits: Pixabay (not the actual photo)

The woman found the perfect ice cream maker whose price was more than twice the set limit

It is quite a common practice to agree upon the price of a gift in advance and this group of people did so too. This woman’s circle of friends and family had an agreement to not spend more than $50 on the birthday gift, so she made sure to comply with this rule. However, she got just what she wanted and what she thought to be a great gift for her hobbyist baker friend celebrating his 26th birthday. 

Even though the ice cream maker she got initially cost more than double the agreed price, this woman managed to get it for less than $50, as she used two stackable coupons which comprised a 30% discount in addition to there being a sale at the store. 

As she expected, her friend was ecstatic on seeing the gift, contrary to her friends who were worried their presents paled in comparison. They accused the woman of going beyond the agreed budget. And even though, as this woman explained, she used the discounts and showed the receipts, her friends still kept badgering her for making their gifts look bad. 

This seems like an unfortunate reaction from one’s friends, as while we may wish our friends to be happy, we also wish they can be happy for the right reasons. One might question whether one’s aim when giving their friend a birthday gift is to compete with other gifts or to make the person happy in our own way. 

The woman bought the ice cream maker for less than $50 using two stackable discount coupons when it was on sale

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Image credits:  SHVETS production (not the actual photo)

Despite the woman texting the receipts to her friends, some of them were still angry with her

While one can set a limit for the price, it might be strange to think that the gifts being equally as good is among the priorities of one’s birthday party celebrations. It would be wrong to push a person to go beyond what he is able or willing to give, it is equally wrong to ask a person to lower his creativity or limit his thrifty nature for no additional reason. 

As long as this woman wished to give her friend something he would like and she succeeded in doing so while also complying with the agreed price, her friend’s arguments sound more like jealousy rather than valid points.

In his article “Gifts and Social Relations” Aafhe Komter discusses the moral side of a gift-giving act and argues that people can have very different motives when giving a gift. Their reasons can vary from disinterested generosity to seeking personal gain, with numerous variations in between. 

And while “the gifts can be altruistic and agonistic, beneficial as well as detrimental”, the scholar gives an example of a poisonous cup for the latter. The moral evaluation of a specific gift, according to Komter, depends on the nature of the social relationship within which the gift is given, and on the purposes and motives of those involved in that relationship.

Redditors backed the woman since she was trying to improve her friend’s situation while also sticking to the rules

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