By SUE BERNER

Christmas has always been known as the season to be jolly and the season to give gifts. 'Tis better to give than to receive but sometimes 'tis difficult to do both.

Most people have trouble selecting just the perfect gift for their loved ones or anyone else on their Christmas lists. The first obstacle to overcome is trying to get through the doors and into the store. For some reason, it seems that the minute you cross the threshold into Woodfield, so does everyone else in the world. All the people you are trying to buy gifts for suddenly swarm out of the showcases and turn up everywhere you do. Your grandpa, your Aunt Myrtle, your gym teacher, and all your friends and enemies put in an appearance.

Once you have firmly established yourself inside the store, try to turn around. Chances are that you will then be facing a stout woman who has just purchased the last of whatever you wanted, regardless of what it was.

You've finished at last! You've picked out the ideal gift for everyone on your list. You wait in line for 39 minutes, wait for seven people to charge things, and then take your packages up to the cashier. They total $48.73. You smile confidently at the clerk, remembering the $50 tucked safely away in your Mickey Mouse change purse. You pull

it out - but wait! You forgot about that $1.39 you spent at McDonald's on the way home from the Christmas Formal. The cashier gives you a dirty look and mutters something obscene under her breath, while you turn an unflattering shade of maroon and stumble out of line to decide what to put back.

Since everyone knows that the gifts that they give are perfectly suited to the people they give them to, most of us find it difficult to comprehend exactly how we received the junk that we did. Items that rank low on the list are Donny Osmond albums, toe socks, AM radios, anything from K‑Mart, and whatever your grandmother gives you.

There may come a time, however, when you receive the ideal gift. You love it, and it's exactly what you wanted. Chances are that one of four things will be wrong with it.

1) It is the wrong size.

2) It does not have a motor.

3) Your best friend already has one.

4) Your mother says it's too expensive, and you have to give it back.

So relax and enjoy the holiday season and remember that if you get something you hate from someone you hate, you can always give it back to them for their birthday.