Monday 14 December 2020

Christmas Will Still Be Christmas

Hello, thank you for dropping in.  I fully intended to be here a couple of weeks ago but sometimes real life gets in the way of good intentions, doesn't it?  I had to provide some unexpected child care (which is always delightful, if tiring), we've been waiting around for a couple of days as we had to self-isolate when someone in our childcare bubble had to have a Covid test (which, fortunately, was negative) and we have had some technical problems.  The Best Beloved thinks he has sorted out these problems but if I disappear halfway through this post, you'll know why.

However, here I am, and happy about it, too.  The weather is dreary, wet and mild, but I just don't care.  I seem to care very little about anything at the moment and yesterday the Best Beloved asked me if I was all right.  I know that I'm not, everything is so unpredictable right now and I'm not good at dealing with that, I like certainty and I like to have a plan.  Rolling with the punches is not something which I choose but that's what I have to do right now.  We have no Christmas plan really.  We intend to spend Christmas Day with The Teacher and her family but our recent Covid scare has highlighted that this may not happen.  We still don't know whether The Mathematician will be able to make it here from Guernsey or not.  We have told her that she can come with a few hours' notice and also that she mustn't feel obliged to come.  At the moment we are in Tier 2 so we can't have overnight guests.  That might change later this week or it might not.  The restrictions will be lifted on 23rd December for four nights, there will be no flights to Birmingham so she would have to fly to Southampton or Gatwick, if there are any flights, and hire a car from there and we expect that the roads will be horrendously busy on 23rd and 27th.  If she does come, hospitality venues will be closed and the only place she could meet up with her friends would be outside and it's December, not really meeting-up-outside weather.  Of course we would LOVE to see her but I am being realistic, it might not be worth it for her.  So we have no plan, only ifs and maybes, and I have unexpectedly reacted to this by emotionally shutting down somewhat.  It must be a coping mechanism, but I am usually an emotional creature and it feels strange.

Of course, whether I can gather my family together or not, Christmas is definitely not cancelled.  Yesterday afternoon I went to a lovely Christingle service on Facebook.  A bag was left on my doorstep containing all that I needed: an orange with a piece of red tape wrapped around it, a candle, four cocktail sticks and a small bag of sweets.  I spent the afternoon wrapping presents until 4pm when I stopped, pushed the wrapping paper and ribbon aside and watched the service at the kitchen table.  Actually, "watched" is the wrong word here because what I actually did was participate.  I know that about fifty bags had been given out and I like the thought of fifty people tuning in at the same time, all making our Christingles together, singing and praying, apart but together.  Alone in my kitchen, I forgot myself and sang lustily so sorry, neighbours, if I disturbed you!  When we sang Away In A Manger I placed my Christingle on the table among the presents, lit the candle and turned off the kitchen light.  I'm always a sucker for candlelight but that was a particularly special moment and reminded me that amid all the madness of Covid and Brexit, Christmas will still be Christmas, even if it won't be the same as it usually is.  

I continue to find something positive to note every day and today that is it: Christmas will still be Christmas.

Well, this post certainly didn't go in the direction I anticipated so I'll be back soon to share what I intended to share with you today.

Love, Mrs Tiggywinkle x


16 comments:

  1. Well done you and the Chris-tingle service. I’m belting out carols on my piano to help cheer things along. At least The Mathematician is safe in Guernsey with only two cases at the moment. The same can’t be said for here. Whatever happens I hope you have a good time. I’m sure you will. B x

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    1. I'm sure I will too, Barbara. Thank you for your wise words, I comfort myself with the thought that my daughter is much safer on Guernsey than she would be here. I hope you and your family keep safe, too - and I love the thought of you belting out carols on your piano! x

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  2. We are much the same, so much uncertainty around what is usually such a big family get together. I have come to the conclusion what will be will be as you are so right Christmas will still be Christmas.

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    1. I read something yesterday about how the "sparseness" of this Christmas may reveal the true spiritual heart of the festival and I have found solace in that today. x

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  3. Stay positive! Christmas WILL be Christmas! Sending love to you from America. Stay strong and healthy! xx

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  4. How great that 50 people were joining in with you, it makes you feel a bit giddy these days if there's more than 2, even if it is online. There are no plans this year, anywhere. x

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    1. I met up with three friends yesterday afternoon for an hour or so, outdoors and socially distanced with blankets and hot water bottles. I had forgotten what it's like to be with so many people at once! x

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  5. The Christingle service sounds wonderful and must have lifted so many spirits. It's so hard when you have a large, loving family whom you just want together for Christmas. This year will be so different but as you say it will still be Christmas and loving thoughts can travel miles. Take care:)

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    1. Thanks Rosie. Twenty-two of us usually come together for a day just after Christmas and I think we are hoping to hold a big Zoom meeting this year instead. It won't be the same but we'll hopefully be able to dine out on the story for many years. Stay safe. x

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  6. Christmas is most definitely not cancelled, although it's going to be quite different for many of us this year. Tomorrow Lily will be watching a pantomime with school. This year it is via live streaming but I'm sure they will make it just as much fun for the children.
    How wonderful that you could still participate in the Christingle service and I hope next year you will be there, singing lustily in person. X

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    1. Thanks Jules. You are right, it will be different for many of us but I think we need to recognise that just because it's different doesn't mean it's miserable. I hope Lily enjoys the pantomime - I LOVE a good panto. Oh yes I do! x

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  7. I'm so thankful for the contact from neighbours as they send messages of goodwill. Also we can join in church services online or watch them on television. The Christingle must have been uplifting. It sounds as if a number of people had worked hard to organise it. It's disappointing that a family get together is not possible for many of us this Christmas.

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    1. Linda, I'm trying find something positive in each of the difficult things. I have enjoyed "going" to church online this year, visiting services at churches which I have never been to. I've also enjoyed going in my pyjamas, with a large mug of tea and some knitting! I have spent a significant amount of time chatting to my neighbours over the garden fence this year, it's been a real positive in this horrible situation. x

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  8. Maybe this is the year we all get to feel the true meaning of Christmas...rather than the over commericialised crap we usually get. x

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    1. I do hope so, Jackie, although I was hopeful that we would learn lessons from the first lockdown which don't seem to have materialised. The Mathematician has told me that for the first time in her life, she won't be going to church at Christmas. I feel a bit sad about that but I think she's relieved! x

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