You may have lived 40 years before this, but you have yet to see an anniversary gift like the one you will have to receive for your forty-first anniversary. Chances are, the person who came up with this gem of an idea didn’t think anyone would be married long enough to have to go out looking for it. What exactly? It’s something you walk on every day. It’s called land.

No, you’re not seeing things and that’s not a typo. The modern anniversary gift idea for the 40th anniversary is earth. Now, you can take this as literally or figuratively as you like, but the bottom line is this. When your spouse opens his gift, there better be some kind of solid ground attached to it. Okay, if he doesn’t know what to buy, he’s not alone. Hopefully, though, we can give you a couple of decent ideas, even if they’re going to cost a pretty penny.

The most obvious thing is to literally go out and get some land. No, it doesn’t need to be big enough to put up a ball park, but it should at least be big enough to build a small shack and have a small backyard to sit in during the summer. Yes, we are talking thousands of dollars. Hopefully, however, by now you’ve saved enough money and paid off your mortgage that it’s not too much of a hardship. Also, imagine the surprise on your spouse’s face when you hand over the deed.

For those of you who are laughing at the idea of ​​getting a big piece of land right now, there are alternatives. What you could do is buy the land with the intention of selling it for a profit. Even if you have to get a second mortgage to do this, you’ll be able to pay off that mortgage as soon as the land is sold and still have some nice pocket change to play with in your golden years.

For those of you who are still laughing, although not as much as before, there are still other alternatives. What you could do is go to the backyard and dig up some dirt. Put it in a pot, get a plant or something that can grow in the ground, and plant it. Even some seeds will do just fine. In this way, you can give your spouse a homemade potted plant. Technically, it’s dirt, albeit a bit stretched out.

Another thing you can do is simply add to the soil you already have. Ladies, does her husband like to play golf? Do you have a backyard? Why not put a putting green in the backyard? She will absolutely love you for it. Yes, it’s a lot of money and a lot of work, but it’s something the two of you can do together. At least it’s something to think about.

Hey, I didn’t say getting an anniversary gift this year was going to be easy.