Make My Birthday Wish Come True

My 24th Birthday Celebrations (last year)

I am a big believer in birthdays.  I love the presents and the parties and the general fuss made.  When I was younger our special day was always celebrated with gifts and the chance to decide what was for dinner.  And then for the rest of the week everyone would make an extra effort to be nice to you because it was your birthday week after all.  I remember having a few parties (though to be fair I don’t actually remember any that happened before my 18^th – not to say that they didn’t exist).  My favourite by far was my 18^th birthday party where we rented out a hall and all of my friends and I played children’s party games – pass the parcel; musical chairs; flour cake + apple bobbing – and sat down to have pizza followed by cake and ice cream (unfortunately that was before I had a digital camera so the pics are in storage at my parents).

My favourite part of being the birthday girl has always been the presents (I am a very material girl).  I love opening gifts and knowing that someone has taken the time to choose something for me (or at least looked at my Amazon wishlist!). 

You’re probably wondering why I’m talking about birthdays when mine isn’t for another month yet. This year I am doing something different.  Something that scares me, but I know it will be worth it.  I am still having a party but this year I am asking that instead of presents, I want donations towards AYME (Association of Young People).  AYME has literally changed my life.  It let me know that I wasn’t alone in how I was feeling with my M.E.  I know that there’s somewhere I can turn to if I desperately need help.  And I have met others living near me with M.E. (as well as being reunited with a childhood friend – hello Georgina).  I used to love receiving the bi-monthly magazine written by members, for members.  A few years ago it changed to quarterly.  And now it has been relegated to online only as there simply aren’t the funds. Other important services such as the online forum community and phone lines are in danger and that’s why I’ve chosen to do this.

It is my 25^th birthday so I only have one year of membership left (it is for people under 26), but I don’t want to leave knowing that I could have done more to help them.  They have made my life so much better, especially over the past few years, and I would hate for future young people to miss out on what AYME can offer.  So I am going for a bit of an ambitious amount I want to raise (hey, if you don’t reach for the stars, you won’t reach them).  I want to donate £250 for my birthday but this simply isn’t going to happen without your help.  If you can help I have set up a Just Giving page so you can donate safely and securely. 

Please consider making my birthday wish come true this year and donate as much or as little as you can (to quote Tesco ‘every little helps’) and spread the word.  I will be so grateful for every penny you can spare and you know you want to make me happy – after all, it’s for my birthday!