Christmas has to be my absolute favourite time of the year, and what a Christmas I have had. I have been spoilt rotten by family, friends and the fella; new shoes, new clothes, perfume, toiletries, CDs, make up, books and even a do-it-yourself gingerbread house kit! I did a fair bit of spoiling of my own of course, and am thoroughly dreading heading to the bank next week to see the damage I have cruelly inflicted upon my account over the festive period.
With all the gifts and presents, new this and new that, its easy to get swept away in the commercial side of this national holiday and forget what Christmas is really meant to be about. And no, I'm not talking about it being the birth of Christ (or alternatively Santa's birthday, as I witnessed a little boy trying to convince his mother in the queue for the River Island sale the other day), I'm talking much closer to home than all that.
Personally, I see Christmas as the perfect excuse to spend time with all those you hold dear to you. I always spend my Christmas eve with my Mam and my sister. We pamper ourselves and have a takeaway (this year it was KFC, last year it was a Chinese - we like to be varied in our tastes). I have worked the last three Christmases, which probably sounds like hell on earth to most, but it means that I get to see all my friends from work and the local area, the money's good and I still make it home in time for Christmas dinner. The rest of the evening is spent with the family (just the four of us), parked in front of the TV watching whatever new DVDs have been bought and over indulging on good food and good wine. Pure bliss.
I spent Boxing Day with the boyfriend's family playing penny-bet card games (which I didn't really understand but seemed to be winning some how) and the day after he joined my family for a second Christmas day, full of more overindulgence and excessive film watching.
That to me is what Christmas is really meant to be about. Our family doesn't often get an opportunity to sit round the dinner table together and spend days on end in each others company, because we're usually too busy and important the rest of the year to make time for each other. After Christmas, however, I always feel highly contented, knowing just how lucky I am to have spent all that time with those I love. It makes you realise how good life is really, or at least that's my opinion.
This Christmas has been one of the best yet, and I can enter the new year safe in the knowledge that I really am surrounded by some incredible people. So, I would like to wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year - I'll see you all in 2011.
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