Pick Me Up! 03-Dec-2020

Back in 2017, I’d just started volunteering for a local charity. I’ve always been charity focused, and donate to as many as I can. But I’ve always wanted to do more, I just wasn’t sure what. That year, as Christmas approached, I realised how suddenly popular advent calendars were. Walking around, it was no longer 24 days of chocolate, but gin, makeup and even beer. However, despite a growing demand for ethical products, there wasn’t anything charity based. And that’s when I had a dawning realisation. I need to do something about this, I thought to myself. It was a simple idea – 24 days for 24 charities. Each day, instead of receiving a gift, you donate some money. ‘This is a great idea,’ people kept telling me. John Lewis…

We’re loving this! The wonderful David Attenborough has told us repeatedly over the past decade that we need to be kinder to the earth. But when it comes to Christmas, it’s hard to wrap our heads around new ways to do this. We don’t seem to have many options besides the pretty non-recyclable wrapping paper or the alternatives of ugly brown paper or newspapers, which undeniably isn’t to everyone’s tastes. But Curlicue has launched the alternative that we’ve all been looking for. An eco-friendly wrapping paper that actually looks good! Started up in London last year, proud BAME owner of this genius creation is passionate about making it easier for people to live sustainably. If every individual used an eco-friendly option, it would help cut down on 227,000 miles of wrapping…

If your letter makes Star Letter of the week, you will receive some beautiful blooms from Flying Flowers. With over 30 years’ experience of helping celebrate life’s special moments and FREE delivery by post, a gorgeous bouquet by Flying Flowers is a lovely way to celebrate sharing smiles and happiness. See flyingflowers.co.uk for more details.…

Taking a seat at the dining room table, my son’s eyes widened. ‘Mum, you’ve really outdone yourself,’ Joe, 25, smiled. In front of him lay a full Christmas dinner with all the trimmings – a glistening turkey, roast carrots and parsnips, pigs in blankets, stuffing, warm Yorkshire puddings and steaming gravy. With Christmas music playing in the background, I’d created a nice festive atmosphere for him. Although he was eating his Christmas dinner alone, he piled his plate as high as he possibly could. ‘Cheers Mum,’ he smiled, lifting up his drink with a cheeky grin. While most people enjoy a scrumptious meal like this on Christmas Day, for Joe, it was two weeks early – on 8 December 2019. Myself, my husband, Michael, 57, and our son, Sam, 30,…

Afew weeks later, we finally managed to get Joe’s body flown home. It had cost us ?4,500 – more than Joe paid for his cheap surgery. I couldn’t face seeing him in that state, and so we agreed to have him sent off for a post-mortem. Christmas rolled around a few days later, and it was unbearable for all of us. Joe had always loved the Christmas tree, so we’d decided to put it up in his memory, but sat around it, I couldn’t stop crying. ‘It’s not right,’ I sobbed. ‘Joe should be here.’ That day, his friends brought around a hamper of nuts, chocolates and biscuits, with Joe’s name on it. They didn’t want there to be an empty space under the tree where Joe’s gifts should have…

You would do anything you could to help someone you loved. When I found out that there was something I could do to save my husband’s life, there wasn’t a single doubt in my mind. In 1991, I met Simon, 56, at the local pub. Over a pint and a packet of crisps, we became partners and best friends, and just two years later, we married. I always knew he was the man for me! As the years passed, Simon suffered regularly with water infections, and he also kept falling unwell. In 1996, his doctor sent him for a scan, and that was when we discovered Simon had kidney failure. ‘Your kidneys are only functioning at 26%,’ the doctor explained. We didn’t know the cause, only that his kidneys were…