What would you like to say to greeting card companies?

I’m shopping for Valentine’s Day cards and growling a little.

These days there’s perpetually an upcoming holiday or occasion, and many of them have a card-giving custom associated with them, thanks mostly to the marketing efforts of companies such as Hallmark.

There seem to be more varieties of cards than ever. Nevertheless, shopping for cards is often an exasperating experience.

Here are some of the things that I wish greeting card companies would remember in their products:

• Children typically have two sets of grandparents. Don’t stir up trouble with cards that say “world’s best grandma” or “granddad, I love you more than anything.”

• Don’t insist on pairing loving sentiments with exaggerated compliments that describe impossible beings. Just go for expressions of genuine feeling. I can love my husband without thinking he’s perfect. I can tell my sister she’s special to me without claiming we’re knit forever in an unassailable bond and I couldn’t get through a week without her. We may not be close at all, but I still want to wish her a happy birthday.

• Don’t force all good wishes to be accompanied by lavish outpourings of affection. I can wish my in-laws a wonderful anniversary or a happy Easter without telling them how much I adore them.

In other words, try for a middle road on some of the greetings—warm expressions that a person can endorse sincerely and send without feeling like a bald-faced liar.

 
How about you? What would you like to tell them?