Your Ghosts of Christmas Past

Happy New Year to all you bloggers out there! Bit thoughtful with the coming of January - so here's an offering to all you parents out there...

Your Ghosts of Christmas Past

 It’s all about the before: you make up beds; buy stuff you haven’t had in the house for months like devil-may-care tubs of thick cream; chocolates; joints of ham; spare pillows! Red is best, the tree has to be huge and oh God, you embrace the excess of it. You’re humming to Slade on the radio; Walking in the Air.

Then they arrive: your kids, now adult and they leave their dirty plates and borrow your razor; your new tights (and snag them). The cat is on the beds again. The house is filled with festive mess and noise and on The Day you open presents like you always did, with fuss and hugs. The sweet ghosts of your Christmas Pasts whisper of stockings filled; whisky and a mince pie for Santa; size 3 wellies for a winter walk; Buzz Lightyear and the first doll. Remember when? Never forget it!

Then it’s the after: you strip the beds; the cat settles on your new jumper but you can’t be bothered to shift it. The tree is shedding like crazy so you strip it too and wrestle it outside into the sharp damp of a January morning. Twinkly lights switched off. Kids dropped off at the station, one by one. What next?

What now?