What Does Packaging say about the Gift?

I just recalled this memory today.  I was at a classmate's tenth birthday party, and we were doing a scavenger hunt to find her biggest birthday present.  We finally made it out to the garage for the last clue, and everyone was looking.  I saw something covered by a big dust cloth, and peaked under.  "Oh, it's just a bike," I said. 

"A bike!?!?" shouted my friend, and everyone crowded around me.  Yep, sure enough, that was her gift.

I didn't recognize the gift because of the packaging.  It didn't look like a gift.  It was covered in a dustcloth. 

For some reason, I expect all the gifts in my life to be packaged and clearly marked (in a metaphorical way, of course).  Sometimes I guess I hope God will say, "Take this job offer, it is going to lead to your wildest dreams!" or "This is THE ONE!"

But there are so many times in life that we are receiving big gifts without even knowing it.  They are not packaged in huge, momentous ways.  There is no theme music. 

I don't remember the day I met most of my best friends, for instance.  What a gift they have each been in my life, and yet I didn't see that at the time.  An inconsequential, well-timed conversation with a professor caused me to uproot my entire life and move to St. Paul.  That was a life-changing gift, and I did not recognize it in the moment.  A simple email asking for piano lessons turned into the tremendous gift of graduate school on a tuition waiver.

Then there are the gifts packaged as evils.  Right now, since moving to a new city, I notice that I feel lonely A LOT.  It takes time to build new friendships and feel connected to others in a meaningful way.  But I see that loneliness is also a gift.  It has caused me to be more aware of others around me.  It has forced me to break through my reserve and reach out to others.  It has caused me to be more self-aware. 

Sometimes I ask God for a SIGN.  Something clear.  So why are many of His gifts hidden under a dustcloth?  Why are they packaged so ordinarily, so that they fit into life's fabric without showing their value? 

Maybe the lack of clear packaging is also a gift.  It causes me to work a little harder at practicing gratitude.  It causes me to open my eyes a little more and to learn to be thankful for everything I encounter, whatever its appearance.