What? Really, 10 days? ONLY 10 DAYS OMG WTF TBH AFK, and other completely irrelevant abbreviations.
Because, at the end of the day, there's no need to use caps lock nor panic. You've done everything you need to do. You've collected recipes. You've got the gifts. You sent the cards. You cleaned the house.
Now, all there is left to do, is calm down, light some more candles, put on some music of your choosing, pour yourself a glass of mulled wine, and enjoy the wait.
You know, I've always thought the wait is the best part of Christmas. Even when I was little, I thought that even better than the presents, even better than the food, and even better than opening the advent calendar, was the ambiance in the house. Especially if you woke up in the middle of the night, got out of bed, walked to the kitchen, and saw the tree in the dark, illuminated faintly by the fairy lights, and a glass jar full of Christmas chocolates on the table. The rest of my family was fast asleep, and the only sound I could hear was my feet against the floor as I tiptoed around. I mean it. The best part of the Christmases in my childhood was waking up alone in the middle of the night.
Even now, as an adult, I get a warm feeling in my heart every time I wake up in the night during Christmas time - even for a second or two - and see the tree from the corner of my eye and the fairy lights outside. I even got a beautiful glass jar with a lid a few years back to be filled with chocolates to remind me of the special ambiance. For me, it makes all the difference in the world.
Since it's only 10 days until Christmas, I encourage you to make the time last as long as possible. Avoid being in a hurry with anything. If you do something (cooking, for example), do it without rush, completely relaxed, preferably with a glass of that mulled wine and some gentle music. Take your time with the chores. Do the things you enjoy doing during the holidays. And if you still haven't got a tree, do get it, and spend hours decorating it if you like. You're only doing it once a year, after all.
Oh, and remember to fill up that glass jar whenever it runs out of chocolates.
RK
