Writing on the Wall

The kids are sleeping and I am sitting her mostly alone, trying to decide what to write about today.  The Christmas tree lights shine and the coloured lights around the room give it a soft colourful glow.  I was thinking about writing about the true meaning of Christmas, but there are so many different opinions out there that it seemed misguided to only write about what I believe, what I have been raised to believe, and the beliefs I have adopted on my own. 
The only constant around Christmas is the spirit of giving to those less fortunate.  I actually did something the other day that I have never done.  I gave money to the Salvation Army.  I was in the grocery store and a man was standing by his red bucket. jingling his bells, and it just made  me think.  I strongly support the veterans on Remembrance Day but at Christmas I sometimes forget about those people out there less fortunate.  I am not well off by any means, but I have a roof over my head, food in the fridge, warm clothes to wear, and extra money to do some fun things.  My daughter has just about everything she needs, actually probably more than she needs and there are people out there that don't have any of the above mentioned items that we often take for granted.  So, I decided it was my time to give a little more.  I think about it every year but very often just don't take action.  When the weather gets really cold here, and it does get really cold, I think about the poor homeless people out there and how difficult it must be for them in these temperatures.  I want to do something but it seems overwhelming.  There are so many people that need help, where do you start, how do you decide who is more deserving? 
Last year I was going to donate some blankets and warm clothes to the homeless shelters but then I got to thinking, only about 1000 homeless people make it into the shelters each night, (that number may be off, it's probably even less) so what about the other 1000 that are huddled under stairs in back alleys, under bridges, in parks among the trees, with barely anything to cover them, trying desperately to stay out of the frigid cold.  I could not imagine a life like that and I am sure the vast majority of us couldn't either but the fact remains that it's out there whether we choose to acknowledge it or not. 
So I did my little bit and hope others will too.  In the spirit of Christmas.