When you have very little that’s new when you’re a child it’s very easy to want or wish you had new and shiny things. As children, we may begin to feel left out that others got to have new and shiny things and we didn’t.

I believe that having Cerebral Palsy in many respects saved me from most things, including the need to have new and shiny things. For those who want shiny things, they may spend money they haven’t got, because they think having new things will replace the things they missed out on, when they were children. It doesn't.

Those of us who have had hand me downs, second hand clothes and toys, may feel as though they’ve missed out and as the adult may choose to buy those things. Without material things, it's easier for us to look at and perceive our life in other ways that don't involve material things, as long as we're willing to embrace the concept.

It’s a shame that so many of us use our lack of having shiny things as a child to buy shiny things when we’re adults. We also tend to go out of our way to make sure our children have what we didn’t have. Personally, I’m not sure what children will learn by that, except they'll just want more.

Sometimes we have to be okay with the fact that we didn’t, because that way we stay grounded and our lives stay real.