On days like this I open the curtains slowly so as not to startle the neighbours. Sure enough, when I do, there are five rabbits frolicking in the early morning frost just a few steps away. A good start to Christmas morning, when I often remember the giddy excitement of my childhood. Today the magic is in this moment, in the simple everyday goings on of two families. One outside the window sniffing out green shoots, one tucked up in their beds; growing, changing, transitioning.
It's the best part of the day, this early coffee and toast, a private photo opportunity over breakfast. And even though they are men now, it is always the same when they sleep in this house, I have the illusion that they are protected and safe from harm. And especially at Christmas that dreams will come true.
This year in the space before the expectations set in, we made a joint decision that dreams are not necessarily made of gifts wrapped in packages or by playing happy families. We let each other off the hook. The perfect Christmas, the perfect day would be best if kept to a day like any other. One with love, peace and understanding, full of pleasure and freedom, a day of winter warmth inside while it freezes and storms outside.
And so here I am, easing softly into this frosty Christmas morning. Happy in these moments of calm and eager to experience a post Christmas, adults only alternative.
