Christmas - a time of fun, friendship and reflection
I love Christmas. Its one of the few times of the year when the whole family get together. We are a fairly normal family, with relatives spread throughout the UK, from the south coast right up to Newcastle. So its something of a treat when my family get together.
But times have changed. It was once a case of a lot of very excited small children putting out the carrot and sherry, rising at 5am, opening stockings, desperate for the main presents to be opened after the Christmas breakfast. Now Christmas is slightly different. We still have our Christmas traditions, but with most of the family having flown the nest and set up home elsewhere, it is something of a treat to meet up again over the turkey and stuffing and share a glass of bubbly or two.
We have our own fairly traditional Christmas, but these days many others will follow a very different Christmas itinerary, by choice or circumstance. You may, like us, have a family gathering. You may meet up with a group of friends and share the cooking, or go out for a slap up meal. You may escape the madness of Christmas and take yourself off for a week in the sun or on the ski slopes. You may help out at a homeless project, or you may be spending Christmas alone by choice, or not.
Christmas is a time of rushing about, buying presents, writing cards, cooking & entertaining. But for me, Christmas is also a time to reflect on how the past year has gone.
No doubt, like me your year has been one of ups and downs. Ive had some wonderful moments with family and friends, some great trips away and meals out, cinema trips and lovely walks in the countryside. And togetherfriends has really taken off in a big way which is great to see, especially since we featured in the Daily Express. But it has also been a year of great shock and upheaval in the summer I fell off my bike and broke my elbow, resulting in a metal plate being fitted and months of physio and exercise. I also moved out of the family home where we have lived for the past 20 years, with mixed feelings of sadness and excitement about what lies ahead.
The end of the year offers me the perfect opportunity to look back and consider how I would ideally like to move my life forward in the New Year.
As we move into our new house in early January Im vowing to make some changes, go out a bit more now the kids are more independent, join some new clubs and put togetherfriends into action by meeting and socialising with some new people.
What are you up to over Christmas and what are your thoughts about the year ahead? And if they involve starting new activities with new friends, remember togetherfriends is there to help you!
