Image by Angeles Balaguer from Pixabay 

Christmas Eve is always a busy day in our house, although these days, it is a very different kind of busy.

I have fond memories of the good old days when our family came to our house for Christmas dinner. In the beginning, it was comfortable, but as the family grew over the years, it really took some organising.

The cooking was never a problem, as I can cope with almost anything in the kitchen, big or small. Fitting everyone around the table proved hilarious at times. We never had enough chairs, so there was always one person perched on something precarious.

These days our house is too small (and we are getting too old.) We don’t have anywhere near enough chairs or even a big enough table, so we have been succeeded by a granddaughter, one with a large house and a fantastic cook for a husband.

When this arrangement started, it was a strange novelty, eating a meal that I had not cooked, and I didn’t expect to like it, but I did, and now, I always look forward to having the day off.

We wanted Christmas to be special this year but could not have foreseen what 2022 had in store for all of us. Would the ghost of this dying year spoil the holiday?

It feels right for the first time ever that the year is slowly dying, slipping away unnoticed among all the chaos and misery.

We feel the same way as the ghost of Christmas present hovers in the doorway like an unwelcome guest, unsure as we all are as to what will happen next.

2023 is just a few days away, a brand-new year.

A year we are beginning to think will be the same as the last.

But does it have to be?

I woke up this morning with the overwhelming desire to send all the misery, worry and complacency packing along with this dreadful year.

To rekindle the spark that will make us all feel alive again.

At first, we will probably have to ‘Fake it until we make it,’ and push the envelope like crazy until life feels better.

We wish all of our friends and followers a Wonderful New Year, a year full of promise and possibilities, and in a few days, we will be sending out the first of our 2023 newsletters, looking forward and planning a much better year…

GIF by Julius H. from Pixabay