I don’t celebrate Xmas, my birthday etc. I’m more interested in how we treat each other every day and the difference between right and wrong rather than anything that divides us. I particularly dislike that, for many, consumerism has replaced the real value of gift-giving on days such as Xmas, easter and valentines.

BUT I DO WISH YOU ALL HAPPINESS TODAY, whether you’re celebrating in the religious or the secular/cultural sense.

If today becomes, in any way, a day of stress for you, then you’re doing something wrong. Rethink your approach and try again because it’s important that you enjoy it.

If anything, I wish there were more periods where we could step away from the growing pressures of our world. Adults, more than kids, need time-outs, for themselves. And all need more time with those they care about.

Not sharing TV or washing dishes as rituals between day jobs and sleep but rather distraction-free, I-Give-You-My-Attention-Connectivity. Can you stare at your husband or your teenager for 5 minutes without talking, sacrificing your normal multitude of preemptive, ‘conversational’ thoughts so as to remind who you are to each other, that you are both important enough to gain all of you, even for a little while?

I want you to truly look at each other as an opportunity to remind yourself what’s important. My hope is that that gives you the strength to stand up for what you believe in during 2016.

I may not have traditions but Xmas comes the closest because that’s the day I start with a soundtrack of golden oldies as I head into a day of normally very productive catch-up. I get more done that day than on any other. That makes me self-satisfied and happiest with myself. And, as online becomes quiet over the following week, I will use the extended period to file things, order thoughts, minimise my mail’s Inbox, make ready the Knysna submission to Parliament, and write an article or more in advance. I expect that as the elections approach, my fluffy blogs will be consumed by politics and new challenges to my survival.

Consequently, this period is one I’m very grateful for, an opportunity to prepare rather than always reacting to the whirlwind of the rest of the year.

Although I may turn down invites to Xmas lunch, I’ll never turn down an offer of leftovers… there isn’t even a beer in the house… ho-ho, hint-hint, ha-ha 🙂

Blues-rock is playing loudly whilst my fridge defrosts and my washing drips. It seems quite appropriate.

Enjoy a wicked holiday!

Mike Hampton