Going back home for Christmas is always manic. Buying presents at the last minute. Listening to Fairytale of New York on repeat. Eating until you feel like you’re about to burst. But nothing is as important as with whom you spend Christmas.
“Family is not an important thing. It is everything.”
We were always a close family growing up. However, as you get older it takes more effort to keep in contact. Interests differ, your siblings move out and get into relationships and being a child feels like a long time ago. It is for these reasons that you should do everything you can to make time for your loved ones.
Keeping everyone happy at Christmas is one of the most difficult tasks of all time. Your nephew wants to play that loud board game everyone hates, your uncle wants another mulled wine and your mum wants everybody out of the kitchen until food is ready!
Getting presents for my brothers and sisters was not so hard this year. We are only a few years apart from each other, either just finished University or been in work only a few years. I wanted a nice skincare set that I could give to my siblings. Wake Skincare provides products for the generation connected. This is perfect for my siblings who all live active lifestyles and could do with a little TLC in their skincare regime!
It meant that no one could complain that I’d spent more on the other sibling!
However, presents are only a small part about Christmas (at least they should be), anyway I have always enjoyed giving presents rather than receiving them.
Without sounding all preachy, I always make sure that I spend at least one day around the Christmas holidays giving back. The Christmas consumer culture can often lead people to forget what is truly important at this time. A lot of people don’t have wonderful families to spend time with, and will definitely not be eating a roast turkey!
There are so many different charities that you can give to, giving to local homeless shelters might sound cliche but during the winter months it is more important than ever to give to those without heating and food.
Domestic violence issues increase in conjunction with periods of great alcohol consumption. Women’s Aid is a fantastic
Christmas should be a time to reflect. Reflect about how fortunate you are and how you can make a difference to the lives of others. Also, appreciate the time that you and your loved ones can spend together before it is all over for another year.