"Shaking the Holiday Blues"
by Becky

Dear Mr. Barker,

Every year the holidays really stress me out. From Thanksgiving to the New Year I never seem to have enough time to get anything done nor do I have the resources to compete with the commercial pressures generated when trying to make things as merry as possible.

This year was no exception, being that I am a single mother trying to do the best job I can raising my three children, it can be really hard at times. I had just enough money to buy maybe one nice gift for each of my children. Many nights I cried myself to sleep and tried to find answers to why I was being punished in life or at least that is how it felt to me.

I did manage to get each of my children a gift but the hurt I was feeling still remained.

"How could I shake the Holiday Blues?", I asked myself.

I was talking with a friend of mine who is also using the POINTS Method and she suggested that maybe I should send an email to you at Parentpoints. She said, "Maybe you are not the only one experiencing this frustration and if not, maybe they can share a solution with you that someone else has used to get over this gloominess".

I sent an email to Mr. Barker and I was so surprised to get a response. He assured me that I was not alone. That we all have each other and that my success was his success and my pain was his pain, so we needed to get through this thing together. That made me smile to see that someone who does not know anything about me would reach out in such a way. I am sure he gets thousands of letters and email per year.

He suggested that I get three small stocking and fill them with treats, snacks, fruits and nuts and tell the children that they cannot touch them until Christmas Day. He said that on Christmas night I should get up and put eight crisp 1,000 POINTS currencies in each child's stocking for them to discover in the morning.

WHAT!!!!!!, I thought.

He started laughing and I asked him what are you laughing at. He said, "I know you are thinking what in the world is going with him, He must have fallen and bumped his head" (Smile) I must agree I was more than a little concerned, that is equivalent to $240.00 (24,000 POINTS)!

Mr. Barker explained that contrary to what I was thinking the children would not decide to spend $80.00 each on expensive items at the local department store. He said, they would be so excited about having so many POINTS at one time. They would begin to form in their minds so many uses for those POINTS around the house. This would connect them directly to me and what it was I was really trying to share.

Today, it is December 29th and I have not had to spend any money other than what I would have spent anyway. For example, we stopped for "Taco Bell" or a "Happy Meal" a couple times because I did not have time to cook on those days, other than that they used them to play their video games, watch T. V., rent movies and to pay for the occasional fee due when failing to behave properly.

The joy and happiness that I have experienced with my children over the pasted five days is unexplainable! You were 100% correct! I managed to connect with my children the way I had wanted to and it did not cost me anything. I had what I needed all alone inside myself. Thank you for showing me how to get to it and use it. Daron you are indeed in my prayers, keep on doing what you are doing!