The point I made about anniversaries being about looking back in order to contemplate the value created by being together – through experiences, kids, the lot – brings me to my next point: if looking back is what these occasions are for, why not get anniversary gifts which precisely serve this purpose?

Rather than being the expensive cherries on the cake, booze and three course meal, your anniversary gifts could be retrospective summaries of a relationship. This is what Charlie’s Cartoons are.

So what else might you get as anniversary gifts? A pet, perhaps? Hmm, tough to make that one a surprise… Such an important anniversary gifts decision is bound to be preceded by long chats about what animals you like, how much time you can both commit, what you’re allergic to and so on. It would be a pretty gutsy move to turn up with a puppy in a box.

But then most anniversary gifts: a tie, a watch, etc  etc, are so bland that you almost feel that you have to “spend your way out of the problem” – i.e. if I spend £300 on my anniversary gifts, then they’re bound to be appreciated. It’s a simple case of economics: cost to me, benefit to you.

Might seem a bit cynical, but if we’re honest, most anniversary gifts are viewed in the perspective of some sort of transaction. This is an event where presents will be given both ways. Unlike birthdays where it’s about an individual, or Christmas where it’s about a group, this is about a two-person exchange.

Differences in how much each person invests in their anniversary gifts will be glaringly obvious. The only thing that can blur the edges of this cynical perspective is getting personal with your anniversary gifts. Making them personalised.