Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

My mother always told me it wasn’t necessary to send a thank you card for a greeting card you received. However, I think that if a person went through the trouble to pick out a card for you, address it, put postage on it, and mail it, you could send them a note saying you got it, it meant a lot, etc. But, then, do you get into an endless loop of card sending? — Michelle in Flower Mound, Texas

Aunt Dandelion answers:

Michelle, you have a choice here. While Aunt Dandelion does not feel that you must send a card or letter in response to a greeting card, every kind gesture deserves some token of acknowledgement and thanks.

In the case of a greeting card, a response lets the sender know that their card was delivered and received, which is the absolute minimum you owe them. Your response can be made by phone or email, or in person, the next time you see them (if the timing isn’t too distant). Of course you can also write to them, and this is the preferred method for persons who may not use email.

Saying thank you is a beautiful and necessary communication between people. It completes the circle of giving and receiving. This circle is opened by the person who thought enough of you to send or give you something, if only a card or a kind thought. The loop is not endless; thanking them closes the loop, as it is not necessary to thank someone for their thanks.