Curious Incidents of a Flailing Mermaid

Adult Christmas: anti-climax or just right?

Have you seen "The Wedding Collection" , which I put together yesterday. I decided to dump it all online during a Christmas Day lull. You know, when there’s a crap film on TV, your husband is asleep on the floor by the fire, the Mother in Law is playing Candy Crush or similar, and the Father in Law is upstairs desperately looking for sport to watch.

I hope everyone has had a lovely Christmas. I can’t complain; good food, gifts and Baileys – that’s basically my day yesterday. I’ve been suffering with pain, which I think comes from a 4-hour drive and too much walking. You see, since I broke my foot in August, I haven’t been walking too much. But I can’t use my wheelchair here, so I’ve just had to hobble along. At least I had the foresight to bring some stronger painkillers (I wasn’t going to as I haven’t needed them in a while).

Every year at Christmas I find myself wishing I were a child. Or, maybe, just had a child. It is so much more magical when you’re young, isn’t it? So much more exciting! As a child, Christmas day was never long enough: there was always so much to do, so much to play with. Now, as an adult, it feels like once the presents are all open, that’s it. Christmas is over.

Obviously, presents are not what Christmas is about. But they were when we are children. It’s supposed to be about being with the ones you love, and that’s what I do. However, these days, I spend it with Chris’ family not my own. Nevertheless, each year, I feel like I’m missing something; as if there should be more to it.

Perhaps it is just the different way different families “do” Christmas. My own family are very food, book (we all get books for Christmas) and game orientated. Whereas Chris’ family is very TV oriented. As someone who doesn’t really watch TV, the latter doesn’t really suit. Perhaps this is why I feel something is missing. There’s no “family time” per se, just a TV timetable.

Maybe, I’m just looking for something that wouldn’t be there, no matter how I spent Christmas. I just wonder whether others feel the same.

Is Christmas as an adult an anti-climax or is sitting and doing nothing just what we all need after a busy year?