Ask Santa to leave books all over the couch.

It is One thinga column with advice for living.

I am not that in giftsbut obviously, I was once a child, so I was once very fond of gifts, and Christmas gifts in particular. I still have a very vivid memory of waking up probably at 4 o’clock on Christmas morning and reading by the night light in my room. I was too excited to sleep and we weren’t allowed to wake our parents and come downstairs before less 5:30 a.m.

We always received a big present on Christmas morning, and Santa Claus brought it of course. One year I received an easel and art installation that I proudly called “my weasel.” One year, when my siblings and I were teenagers, a couch ended up in our living room, but its real destination was the basement, where we would finally be allowed to set up a completely independent lounging space. One year it was a wheelbarrow. I wasn’t going to use it, obviously, but I could fit in it. There was something about the gifts being physically big, literally, it was particularly fun.

But we also had a less traditional Christmas gift tradition (actually, maybe we’re the only family that does it?): the sofa book. Santa Claus put the presents (those that came in) under the tree and filled our stockings. But at our house, he also left books all over the couch. The books were not packaged and were not labeled as being specifically for one person or another. But they were just as coveted as the biggest gifts. We received books from our favorite authors and complete series; we have funny books and galleries of The far side. One year we had the turn of the millennium Guinness Book of World Records. Believe it or not, we always browsed the book couch first and then, after all the unwrapping and shouting done over other gifts, we would often settle in by the fire with a favorite.

As I prepare for Christmas with my own home and family, I have been thinking about the traditions from my childhood that I want to preserve. There are many good reasons to create a sofa bed: Maybe you don’t like gifts much anymore either. Maybe you don’t like packing. Maybe you really like reading. Yes, big gifts can be fun. But something about my parents setting aside my books in this specific way made these smaller, lasting gifts feel just as equal. pleasure.