I think the saying is more a commentary on all the useless crap we buy kids for their birthdays, holidays, etc that are played with for 10 minutes and then thro

I think the saying is more a commentary on all the useless crap we buy kids for their birthdays, holidays, etc that are played with for 10 minutes and then thrown in a corner. For many of these "filler" gifts the box literally is more fun than the gift. Like you said though, there are some gifts that stick with a child... My Commodore 64 that I received in 1982 and my 300 baud modem I received in 1985 for instance changed the entire path of my life.