Christmas Eve, snow in the offing. A $500 match, but a cause that needs your help more than we do.

Photo copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved.

Christmas was much less complicated all those years ago.

Ironically, we don't even celebrate it now, not really; we mark the day in ways very stripped-down and simplified compared to how we both grew up. Of course, our present living arrangements make simplicity a must; there's no room for anything else.

Our tree, once again, is outside: This year, it's the big blue spruce a few yards away by the sections of latilla fencing, the great blue evergreen that stands watch over the dogs' graves, amid wild summer strawberries and raspberries and mint and sunflowers. Wings and I took our four unpacked mini-strands of lights (the rest are buried in storage somewhere) and wound them around this tree that would make a perfect Christmas tree, but will never be removed from the earth that holds it safe.

Next year, we will be able to have an indoor tree, too. After seven Christmases in this place, it will be something akin to the holiday joy of our childhoods.

There is still a $500 match on offer, so I'm going to go ahead and post the links here. Beyond the match, I will say that right now, the thing that is most helpful is the Lowes gift cards: We have an enormous amount of fixtures to buy, both bath and kitchen, and those will permit us to shift funds to labor. We're also going to need flooring all too soon, and other materials that can be picked up there rather than paying local prices. Here are the links:

• Shares of our YouCaring page via the widgets provided, especially the widget code, which has once again been moved back to the purple box at the lower right-hand side of the page, that produces the image shown just above.
• Shares of Wings's site; sales also fund the construction (indeed, they are the baseline for it). Testimonials help.
• As I alluded to above, I've added Lowes gift cards to our Amazon wishlist. No, there's no Lowes here in Taos, but there's one an hour-plus away in Española. Less obnoxious (and less expensive, and less far away) than Home Depot, and an actual selection and discount pricing that are not available here in town. It's by far the most cost-efficient way for us to buy the bathroom and kitchen fixtures, which we're going to have to do very soon so that they can complete the plumbing rough-in and our crew can get to those rooms, and other materials like flooring.

And before I go further, I want to shift people's attention this direction. If ever there were a worthy cause this season, this is it. Lin and Laura need all the help we can give them, and as grateful as I am to everyone who has helped us, we have a bit of a reprieve over the holidays while the crew is off work. At the moment, I can think of no better place to put your seasonal pennies and dollars than sending it their direction.

Thank you to everyone who has gotten us this far this year. If you celebrate, may tonight and tomorrow be both merry and blessed; if you don't, may it simply be a beautiful and blessed winter's day for you. Snow is on the way here, and we expect to awaken to a Christmas morning that looks like our childhoods, at least outdoors.

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Aji, 2016; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.