The worldwide trend and financial market has put families at all levels of the economic spectrum at risk of disaster. They need to look more carefully at their spending habits or risk financial ruin, bankruptcy or the loss of their homes.

It has been a long time since the world has seen a financial crisis like this but people survived before and can survive this one again. By looking at your spending and by being willing to help your fellow man, neighbor, people in your immediate neighborhood and beyond, you can create a better and sustainable life.

We need as a population to go back to some old ways of helping, sharing and giving instead of the current way of thinking that we can do it all ourselves. The “I’m alright on my own” attitude that has ruined a lot of society and given out the “I must have more than my neighbor”, “dog eat dog” attitude that so many have, must give way to thinking about better ways of improving everyone’s thoughts of how we perceive others around us, as well as those in other parts of the world who are less able to help themselves, due to war,famine, genocide and starvation.

We really need to sit back and realize how lucky we are and give thanks for that.

This must begin at the grass root level which is in the home, all members of the family pulling together by lowering their expectations of material belongings. This does not mean going without, it just means if you have a particular thing or item that does the job that you don’t need a better one.

It may mean turning off the television and going back to some good old family time together, this can be just good old family discussions, playing games, listening to music – just finding common ground and interests that can flow into weekend activities that are low cost or better still no cost at all. There is still plenty of fun things to do without spending money all the time, just look around and they will be there for you to be found. Kids may not like it at first but they adapt quickly and lower their expectations too.

Look at everything that you have and sort out what you don’t need and instead of just throwing it away look around and see if someone else may be able to use it, many good use able items can improve the lives others who cannot afford to buy them. This can be done in ones immediate neighborhood or donated to disaster relief and appeals to help a particular family in need. All items are always welcome and include, clothing furniture, records, C.D.’s, superseded working computers, children’s toys, books, education materials as well as many other things like non perishable food items.

In your immediate surroundings people can go back to sharing anything that they may have an abundance of. An avid gardener may have produced more than he or she can eat, a fisherman may catch too many fish. If you find yourself in this situation, just have a look around and see who you can share with, they will be more than grateful with a helping hand and will be the first to share any abundance they have with you.

Many communities survive on this sharing system and it has always worked very successfully, it has always been more prevalent in rural areas where costs are high due to high transport costs for goods and came out of necessity for maintaining an acceptable level of living and because many different individuals produced many different varieties of goods.

Everything can be shared this way even if you think you have nothing to give. Some people babysit for others if they have nothing in a material sense. Others might help an elderly person start a small vegetable patch or others may decide on getting others to help start a community garden which is a good idea in large towns and cities where all land has premium value and house plots are small. All these things increase ones awareness of others and helps bring back dwindling community spirit.

So as you can see, many avenues are available without even mentioning money, we all have skills that will help someone else who does not possess that skill. Our lives can be enriched, just by sharing and giving our time to others. Karma or “what goes around comes around” is certainly very evident in these communities.

If you are fortunate enough to have money to share, it doesn’t matter how much or how little that is, so much good will come out of that as it can be sent to places far and wide to help others get on their feet and become sustainable in their own cities, towns and villages.

Times are changing and where some governments are succeeding, many others are failing. It is time that all people go back to not relying on governments to rescue them and look around, get started and others will follow. Very soon these communities will spread and good old fashioned giving and thinking about others will create abundance in everyone. The time has come with people thinking about the future of the world as it is to maybe look back and find the success stories out of the past that we can learn from. Life and life experiences are the greatest teacher of all.

Is the unknown time from the end of the Mayan calendar that finishes on the 21st December 2012 going to be our Utopia. Time is of the essence to find this out, as the world as we know it, is going to change. Do you want to be a part of it?

Was the Timing of The Age of Aquarius, that is here now, our warning to start to create this change?

There is still time to be a part of that change but it has to start NOW, every little bit helps and can be achieved – one step at a time.

Do your part to be an instrument in CHANGE and make this world a better place for all to live.

Patricia Evans