Brighten Christmas for Someone Else
Most people who know me are aware I escaped an abusive marriage several years ago.
When I left my husband and ran to a Women's Shelter, I had two small daughters, a garbage bag full of clothes and diapers, and not much else.
I had serious health issues preventing me from working until I had major surgery so we subsisted on welfare.
The first December on our own was spent in a one bedroom apartment in a part of Calgary affectionately known as CrackTown. We were happier than we had ever been in our big house but I worried about what kind of Christmas I was going to be able to give to my girls. I was living on $800/month and rent alone took up most of my budget. I could barely afford to feed us, never mind buy prezzies.
The Sherriff King Home Crisis Shelter arranged for my little family to be adopted and I almost wept when I saw the pile of presents Dom and Aurora were going receive. That Christmas morning was one of the most wonderful days in my life. We were safe and happy. We were on our own and there were gifts to open. It was exactly how every family hopes to spend the holidays.
I'm never going to forget the time in my life where I had to constantly choose between necessities like food or cough medicine. I'm so thankful that I am in a position to pay my bills and give my loved ones everything they need and most of what they want. But I can't forget those early days when I constantly struggled to makes ends meet.
This is the time of year when the differences between those who have enough to live on and those who don't are glaringly obvious. Right now there are thousands of women and children who can't afford to leave abusive relationships. The cost of living is so high that those women are forced to choose between being beaten or being homeless. Or these brave people have left the violence and are facing extreme financial hardship. Pease consider contacting your local women's shelter and adopting a family. If this isn't an option, then donate some of those essential items shelters are always needing. Diapers, baby formula, winter clothing for children and adults, gift cards to grocery stores, women's hygiene items, bus tickets, and the like. Donating a pair of mittens can literally mean a mother doesn't have to choose between feeding their child or keeping them warm.
It doesn't matter your faith, or even if you have one. We should help our fellow human beings when we can. Please consider giving to those vulnerable families so their lives are made a little easier and a lot brighter.
Happy Holidays, my fellow Earthlings.
When I left my husband and ran to a Women's Shelter, I had two small daughters, a garbage bag full of clothes and diapers, and not much else.
I had serious health issues preventing me from working until I had major surgery so we subsisted on welfare.
The first December on our own was spent in a one bedroom apartment in a part of Calgary affectionately known as CrackTown. We were happier than we had ever been in our big house but I worried about what kind of Christmas I was going to be able to give to my girls. I was living on $800/month and rent alone took up most of my budget. I could barely afford to feed us, never mind buy prezzies.
The Sherriff King Home Crisis Shelter arranged for my little family to be adopted and I almost wept when I saw the pile of presents Dom and Aurora were going receive. That Christmas morning was one of the most wonderful days in my life. We were safe and happy. We were on our own and there were gifts to open. It was exactly how every family hopes to spend the holidays.
I'm never going to forget the time in my life where I had to constantly choose between necessities like food or cough medicine. I'm so thankful that I am in a position to pay my bills and give my loved ones everything they need and most of what they want. But I can't forget those early days when I constantly struggled to makes ends meet.
This is the time of year when the differences between those who have enough to live on and those who don't are glaringly obvious. Right now there are thousands of women and children who can't afford to leave abusive relationships. The cost of living is so high that those women are forced to choose between being beaten or being homeless. Or these brave people have left the violence and are facing extreme financial hardship. Pease consider contacting your local women's shelter and adopting a family. If this isn't an option, then donate some of those essential items shelters are always needing. Diapers, baby formula, winter clothing for children and adults, gift cards to grocery stores, women's hygiene items, bus tickets, and the like. Donating a pair of mittens can literally mean a mother doesn't have to choose between feeding their child or keeping them warm.
It doesn't matter your faith, or even if you have one. We should help our fellow human beings when we can. Please consider giving to those vulnerable families so their lives are made a little easier and a lot brighter.
Happy Holidays, my fellow Earthlings.