My Great Aunt Jean would occasionally blow into town, taking a brief break from her world travels to visit my sister and me.
Aunt Jean brought us the most unique gifts, toys and puzzles that might have been from South America, or from up the street in San Francisco – we could never really tell. Two things made the toys from Aunt Jean special. First, my parents usually disliked them, and second, they were almost always fascinating in some bizarre way. I would marvel at a science kit that showed me how to make ooblick ( a starchy goo) or a robot that sensed barriers and changed direction. Educational toys? Maybe. In the end, what made gifts from Aunt Jean special is the love and thought she put into choosing something that would engage us and hold our attention until her next visit.