This is the time of year when one question is prevalent: What do you want for Christmas?

I know there are plenty of people in this world who can come up with perfect gift ideas without asking.I’m not one of them.Once my daughters no longer went through the Sears Wish Book to show me what they liked, I don’t know if I was ever good at gift giving. I do know that for me it gets harder every year.My dear friend Linda once commented that if you love someone and live with them every day, you should be able to come up with some gift ideas.That’s probably no problem for super-creative Linda. But it doesn’t work for me.Either I’m clueless when I go to buy “something techie” for my husband or my imagination goes totally limp like an overcooked strand of spaghetti.This year I’m like that overcooked spaghetti.David put me out of my misery by honestly answering my question about what he wants for Christmas.He said this year he wants totally practical things he needs. Well, bike parts and a bike tune-up may be practical, as he says, but there sure isn’t any glamour in those gifts.The question for us always comes down to this: Which do you want more — a “surprise” or something you pick out for yourself?In prior years I bought David plenty of surprises. Although he’s a sentimental guy who treasures every single gift someone gives him, I can’t think of any “surprise” I gave him that made his blue eyes light up in wonder.I think the closest I came was a dolphin clock that played a different tune every hour. But that was years ago and I haven’t scored since.To make matters worse, my husband has the uncanny ability to pick absolutely perfect gifts for me — without any hints.This year he says he finished shopping for me early and he’s happy with what he bought. He says he thinks I’ll love my surprises.See what I mean? It’s a problem. I hate wandering about the stores looking for inspiration.I do better when it comes to gifts for my grandkids because they help me. They send me links to things they like. That means they get what they want and I don’t end up spending money for things they don’t like.When my own daughters turn the tables on me and ask what I want for Christmas, that’s another dilemma.Oh, there are plenty of things I want. Those things can’t get wrapped in a box but they are priceless.OK, here’s a short list of what I want for Christmas.I want family meals at my daughter’s house where the entire family lingers around the table instead of rushing off to do the dishes or do something else.Growing up in my Italian family, most meals were a celebration — a celebration of family. After we ate we sat there lingering around another cup of coffee while we talked and just enjoyed being together.What I’m most looking forward to at Christmas is not something in a box. I want to sit back at the table and listen to my grandsons tell tales about college life or about their current interests.Grayson and Cameron are wonderful story tellers. They can make me laugh with their exuberance as they entertain us all with their funny stories.Now that they are in college I really don’t know much about their lives. I’m looking forward to hearing their college stories.I just read a national poll that said 87 percent of all those interviewed said they would prefer being with family over getting gifts.There’s only one thing I find hard to believe in that poll. I can’t believe 13 percent would prefer gifts over being with family. But maybe it depends on family circumstances.As far as I’m concerned, being with family is the best gift.Every year we all gather at my daughter Andrea’s house for the Christmas holidays. I like everything about each and every day I spend there. Andrea does a truly amazing job creating a wonderful family experience for all of us.This year, she decided we needed to “do something fun.” She thinks we need to do more activities because “people get bored sitting around.”So she and my daughter Maria picked out of movie we can all go to see.I have much more fun playing games with my grandkids than I could have in any movie theater.The movie I like best — the one I can never get enough of — is called “real life.” The most meaningful moments are simply conversations with family. The older I get, the more precious each and every one of those moments become.When you are my daughter’s age, perhaps you may mistakenly think “sitting around with family” is boring.When you are my age, you are very much aware of the ticking of the clock. You know you cannot take for granted something as simple as talking to a child, grandchild or cherished relative.When you are my age you know you can’t take it for granted because next year some of the faces around the table may be missing.And then you’ll want to turn back the clock for one more moment of those family talks.