It was indeed a merry merry X-Mas because…

One, we didn’t plan anything and yet everything went perfectly well, which is a rarity. In a usual scenario, we plan days in advance how we intend to spend the much-awaited holiday. Most of the times the plan don’t materialize exactly the way we had dreamt, leading to anger and frustration. This time around, we left everything open-ended and let the day decide how it wants to pan out.  At noon, we all met at a shopping complex where we had an unplanned brunch. And as expected, it turned out to be one of the best brunches we have ever had.  

Secondly, we tweaked X-mas gifts’ tradition a little to shun impulsive shopping. We didn’t buy gifts for one other, rather everyone shopped for his or her own gift and let his secret Santa gift that to him. Though it takes away the surprise element but ensures we don’t buy stuff that we don’t need. Our past experiences taught that no matter how hard one may try, it is a bit overstretched to match up to other person’s exact choice and preference. This was the second year in a row when we shopped for ourselves and it has been a win-win situation for all.   

Thirdly, it was pure family fun with no office work for anyone. It’s the only holiday, apart from Holi and Diwali, when no one works even from home. That means laptops and phones were off limits for professional work. 

Fourthly, there was a newfound comfort in one another’s company. As we are adding years to our lives, all of us are realizing the importance of switching off from our self-consuming professional lives to steal such special family occasions.  X-Mas was the perfect day to ring in that family spirit.

Lastly, there is a disclaimer! Yes, we all had a lovely X-Mas. Yes, it was a beautiful day. Yes, we all have one another’s back like any other family. But I want to make it clear, specially during such festive occasions, that it is okay to have a normal festive day too. A day where you simply enjoy your being without indulging in anything special. Where there is no need to share what you did on social media or with your loved ones. Where you did what you usually do.

For, no matter how rosy our lives may look from outside or on the Instagram or the blog, we all are fighting our own small battles every day that are invisible to the rest. Don’t ever get fooled around by the feel-good vibe of social media. What is shared might be just one aspect of the story.  

For instance, in the picture below, you can see us enjoying a delectable supper. 

But what you might or might not see is the effort we all put behind making it happen. How we all toiled in the kitchen cooking and laying the table. 

This reality check is very important in life. Just in case, you were not able to spend the Christmas the way you wanted, don’t lose heart. There is always a next time. From my pictures, don’t think for a second that it is a glorified life. Yes, it is a beautiful life, yes there are days when we have fun together as a family. But soon the holidays will be over and we all will be back to earning our bread and butter, and fighting our life’s big and small battles. 

Hope you all had a merry X-Mas too!