She is poorer than she was last year. Benefits that she grew to depend on are running out this year.
Paralysis from a devastating neurological condition is worse this year. She looks older now. More feeble now. More vulnerable now. But it's not until you talk to her, that you realize she's not much different now.
She's very excited about the holidays.
Unable to shop in malls, she buys on the Internet.
She can't afford much. So she doesn't buy much. But each gift is unique. Each gift actually is funny.
One for a brother -- another for a friend: Both plan to join her this Christmas.
Her luxury are lattes. She says she's famous for them and guests love them. A small treat, she adds. But it's not her lattes that keep her guests coming, or those gifts.
It's her. It’s her warmth and her determination. Her good will in the face of bad stuff.
I was introduced to her through an acquaintance -- an acquaintance fairly sick himself. But he, like she, is sick in body, not soul.
I don't even remember her name. Only that she's going through a very tough spell this holiday season and you wouldn't know it -- even if you asked.
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