Growing up in a middle class family, I very rarely went without.
Even though my parents and I didn't have the latest gadgets and seldom went on vacations, they consistently went out of their way to make the holidays special.
And although it wasn't the presents that mattered, they were always given in our household.
However not everyone follows this rubric, including country superstar Shania Twain.
The "You're Still The One" singer revealed in a candid interview with the Daily Mirror that she has refused to give her 16-year-old son Eja a birthday present.
"He'll never know my childhood or the way I grew up, it's like another lifetime away," she explained. "You have to make a real effort not to spoil your children. I have to be careful not to let him have everything he wants, so I've only ever baked a cake for his birthday gift."
Twain further elaborated she's strived to make her son understand the value of a dollar even though he knows his mother is more affluent than others.
"He expects it. I'd say, "˜You know what you're getting from me for your birthday.' And he'd look forward to it," Twain continued. "At Christmas, he'll have only three presents. That's not a rich man's celebration."
"A lot of people would send him stuff, and I'd think, "˜How much stuff do you need?' I tell him that anything he's not using after a month, we're giving to charity," she added. "There's no point in pretending that we're without, though "“ if he needs a shirt, I'll get him a shirt. I'm not going to act poor if we're not poor. That's my approach and I'm just doing my best."
In the same interview Twain also discussed her 15 years out of the limelight due to her battle with Lyme disease.
"I thought I'd never sing again. At first I was looking forward to a rest. I'd had a baby, I wanted to make a nest and relax "“ to be a mum and a wife, and not even write songs. I wanted to plant flowers and ride horses. It was awesome, but then my voice still didn't come back," the Grammy Award-winning singer said.
"I couldn't even call out for my dog. If I wanted to be loud, my voice came out screechy. Some doctors told me it was psychological and losing my voice was tied into how I was feeling at the time. I'm angry about that, because they sent me barking up the wrong tree."
But despite her hiatus, Twain said she cherished her time off as she was able to spend time with her son.
"I did a lot of mothering, and I enjoyed those crucial years with my son. There were a lot of blessings, not being distracted by work," she said.
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[H/T: Daily Mirror]