Christmas is here

I remember as if it was only a few months ago that I said: “thank you lovely Christmas tree, and see you next year!” Here and now Christmas is ready to accelerate passing through again soon.

It is always such a joy to unwrap the beautiful baubles as if they are early Christmas presents. I have had most of these decorations for years but somehow they always manage to surprise me as I take them out of the cake box where they had been carefully wrapped and lying quietly for the entire year.

When I first moved here I bought 80 percent of the tree decors in that first year and ever since had only been adding one of two each year as I come cross them serendipitously in little gift shops. Some of my favourite tree decors: a furry robin tree toy, a holly and robin bauble and a decorative bird nest. I guess they remind me that there are so many robins around the area I live, many households have robin designs on their tinted windows and doors from the Victorian era, for me it is a pair of singing robins on the vestibule door.

The tree is up, mulled wine is on, Christmas scent is all around the house, in the background we have been intermittently viewing TV chefs cooking up rich Christmas treats as we wrapping up all the Christmas presents. Christmas is truly here.