Do you leave your Christmas shopping until the last minute?

Surveys show that many of us do, with some people putting off their gift-buying until Christmas Eve itself.

This is a risky practice, because more often than not, the gift you come up with will be rather…interesting, shall we say.

With the stores sold out of the most popular items and the most common sizes and colours, you’re reduced to choosing gifts that are sometimes not well matched to the recipient.

Such as an extra-small sweater (in purple, no less) for your hefty brother.

Or an electric drill for your great-aunt Elspeth.

Oh, well, I suppose there are always gift cards!

But sometimes last-minute ideas can be wonderful.

Think of the origin of the Christmas carol “Silent Night,” which dates back to Austria in 1818.

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