My Christmas Gift Hunt Gone Wrong
Thinking about Christmas gifts always gets me reminiscing, especially about wrestling stuff for the family. It seems simple, right? Someone likes WWE, you get them a WWE gift. But man, it’s not always that straightforward.
I remember this one Christmas, must have been over ten years ago now. My nephew was absolutely crazy about John Cena. Seriously obsessed. Everything was Cena this, Cena that. You couldn’t escape it when he was around. So, naturally, come December, I figured finding him a gift would be a piece of cake. Get something with Cena on it, job done.
So, I hit the local mall. Walked around for ages. Saw the usual stuff everywhere – the bright green t-shirts, the action figures in the plastic boxes. They were okay, but I wanted something a bit, you know, cooler? Less predictable. Something he wouldn’t just get from five other people.
I kept looking and stumbled into this smaller shop, kind of hidden away, that had older merchandise. Digging through a bin, I found this set of Cena wristbands and headbands. They looked a bit more old-school, not like the current design he probably already had. “Perfect!” I thought. Felt pretty smart, finding something unique. Paid for it, wrapped it up later feeling quite pleased.
The Unveiling
Christmas morning arrives. Everyone’s gathered, ripping open presents. My nephew gets to my gift. Tears off the paper, pulls out the wristband set. He just… stares at it. Then he looks up at me. Then back down at the wristbands.
And all he says is, “Oh. Cool. Thanks.”
Zero enthusiasm. Like, completely flat. My heart sank a little. What went wrong?
- Was it not cool enough?
- Did he already have it?
- Was it the wrong size? (Probably not, it’s wristbands!)
Later that day, my sister pulled me aside quietly. She kind of half-smiled, half-winced, and explained. Apparently, in the weeks leading up to Christmas, there was some big pay-per-view event I totally missed. Cena lost, or did something ‘lame’. My nephew had completely flipped. He now hated John Cena. His new favorite? Randy Orton. He’d apparently been talking non-stop about how Orton was way better.
So, my “unique” and “thoughtful” gift was actually for the guy he currently despised. Major fail. All that effort searching for something different, and I picked the wrong wrestler entirely. Should’ve just stuck with a generic WWE logo t-shirt or, you know, actually asked my sister what he was into that week. Kids change loyalties faster than wrestlers change alignments!
It taught me a lesson, though. Getting WWE gifts right means you gotta stay updated on the storylines, or at least check in with the parents first. It still makes me chuckle thinking about his completely blank face holding those Cena bands. What a Christmas memory!
