Back in the day (when I was married and mothering my small mob), we were living with some annoying, albeit character building, challenges. We lived in the land of “never quite enough” and I managed home life by becoming the Queen of Flexibility and Making-Do.
    No matter what they say now, there were plenty of times when they really didn’t know the difference. We ate 16 bean soup and corn bread pretty frequently, and couldn’t afford air fresheners, so you can guess how that worked out. Pasta was on the menu weekly, whether it was served with homemade sauce or as macaroni and cheese with peas and tuna. I’m pretty sure I rationed everything from food portions to toilet paper, and everything in between.
     Simplicity was always the order of the day. .. except most days nothing was truly simple. In fact, everything seemed like a struggle for many years. When money is not available for simple things, everything becomes harder. And in that situation one learns to be flexible and creative while cultivating a sense of humor somehow, or one sinks into despair and hopelessness. I was born to be a silly, sassy, optimistic cheerleader and those personality traits saved me during the years of the great depression in my life. I really did live through the “Pit Of Despair” days and managed to emerge no worse for wear, ready for the next phase of my journey.
     Although I am not financially wealthy, I have managed to accumulate an abundance of riches along this little walk on the planet. Some of my wealth is tangible: my wonderful children and grandchildren, my brother and sister and her family, my friends, my career, my home, sufficient food, reliable transportation, and good health.