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I was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer 3 years ago. For the first two years I only had medicare, no secondary ins. or prescription coverage and am deeply in debt. I get SS disability but don't make it from paycheck to paycheck. My youngest son is 10 and I'd like to leave him some memories and not have to say "no, we can't afford it" all the time. I also need to bury myself, I can't get life insurance. I will pay it forward and have actually been in the "giving" position myself years ago and felt so good about it, I can't believe I'm in this position, I've never asked for anything before. Thank you for listening (or reading), I know nothing will happen but it helped to get it out.

It's difficult times and for older kids, I'm hoping that they can understand that the Holidays may not be like those in the past. But there is something that nearly anyone can do to try and make the best of it this year. So dust off your imagination, brush up on your grade school craft and middle school home ec skills and lets get busy.

I recall my own holidays, granted that's a long time ago. But just as things were a bit low tech back then, it may be somewhat low tech now too. What we did was build memories that have stayed with me much longer than others did.

Decorations - what's the holiday without a little cheer. To help make a fake tree feel real, try getting some of those cheap (buck or two) car scent trees or some pine scent candles. Cinnamon and peppermint are also scents to spice up the house.
To decorate the tree, maybe lights aren't available this year. Make a paper link chain for garland. Make foil balls, pop some popcorn and string the popcorn and make garland. Cut out images out of mags or advertisements and if you take tape and put a strip where you then make a hole - it won't tear easy. Then thread, make a loop and hang. You can cut out letters and images to tape to a window. Take a pretty doll, smallish that may or may not have wings and put her at the top of the tree. Or make an aluminum star to put on top.

Now look around the net for a good play dough recipe. I prefer one without a lot of salt. Especially with little kids, they may just try to eat it. Then with a little food coloring, dyes left over from an egg dying kit or some such you can make the clay different colors. It would be a nice little project for making a little gift. Some doughs need to be baked to harden and then painted. Others will air dry - be sure to check out the instructions for the recipe you use.
You could make cute decorations for the tree too.

Cutting out snowflakes is another craft that takes some work. Getting the pattern for the snow flakes is optional, but often recommended so you don't wind up with some very odd looking cut outs. These can be strung about the room or even a garland can be made with the right pattern. There is sure to be an abundance of resources on the net.

Making funnel cakes, sugar cookies, pies and an assortment of treats (recipes online) with the kids in the kitchen can make some fun memories as long as it isn't approached overly serious. Messes happen and it's the sharing and caring, not the condition of the mini concoctions that's important. Look for items at the grocery store that would be perfect for making small cakes/pies and take a small amount of imagination to create.

Hot apple cider, candy canes to decorate the tree, holiday music and the smell of pine and baked goods all can make the whole holiday feel a lot nicer. As for the gifts to put under the tree or in stockings. Think about giving someone a gift of time. A coupon that offers the holder a gift from you. Time to read a story. Time to take a walk. Go to the park for an hour. Watch a movie together. Whatever you want to offer. Just remember, you also have to honor those coupons or they won't be much of a gift.

Even just sending a homemade card and a handwritten note, is a gift of time, to someone special. It can be that simple and mean so very much to that person.

Go through your stored stuff, most people have far too much stuff stored away they haven't seen in ages. Regift some things that you find or hit the dollar store to get the small sample items. Or try a salvation army, good will or thrift store. That's stuff other people finally got rid of - maybe ask if the thrift shop will take some of your things and make some money.

Now for those that would like to get help in the coming months. Get a MyPoints account, then visit your email and click to view the offers that they send you. You get 5 points for each email viewed. Now be sure to fill out their profile questionnaire as that gives more points. They also have surveys...2-3 questions for 50 points. Fairly easy.

Then for you limited few that still shop online, ebay, amazon, etc. Go to the main MyPoints site and THEN go to the ebay (or other) site through their link. Not only are you going to pay for the item you got anyway, by doing a few more clicks to get there through MyPoints you can get points for every dollar you spend, sometimes more.

Now why do you want these points? Because you can trade them in for a gift card. Like $25,$50,$100 cards for Walmart, Kmart and other stores. There are cards for restaurants, book stores, even hotels. The rewards area can tell you more.

Over the last 5yrs that my sister and I've been members of MyPoints, we've spend hundreds of dollars in gift cards. We used to use them as stocking stuffers for the kids, but then it was Walmart/Kmart cards to get stuff that we needed due to not having the money to get it any other way. My sister travels and she's used cards to get a room or food when she needed one due to hiccups during trips.

So hope that some of these idea have been inspiring. There are lots more things that you can do if you think about the old fashioned kind of celebrations that people enjoyed back in the 1950's or around that area. We can do a lot to not only help to enjoy our own holiday, but to help others enjoy their own. It's more than money, it's time, sharing and caring - listening, connecting and making memories together.

I wish you and yours a very warm and wonderful Holiday and a bountiful New Year to come.

 I got the news today that Larry is under the care of hospice on the west coast and has been living with HIV for many years. I hope to make contact with his brother and hopefully Larry who I care about deeply and mentioned him when I wrote about Alan Watts. We all had such fun times growing up. I hope Larry allows his friends who could care less about the lifestyle he later chose and who love and care about him deeply to allow us connection with him again before he moves to another level of being.

If it hadn't been for the internet as much as I have a love and frustration with the computer, I never would have found people from my past. What a trip!  Now to await contact from Larry and man I hope he lets us back into his life again as it has been decades of no communication. So we wait to hear the next word about him and hopefully from him as it would make my day to be able to talk to him again. 

The way he looked was like James Taylor 

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For Fire and Rain

Peace out

Starshine