Saturday 23rd December 2017

Today has been a lovely day spending it with people who are special to me.
For reasons too long to go into, some of my family don’t speak to each other.  I never felt that it was worth cutting off relations over and so I (feeling like a black sheep at the time) kept in touch.  I’m glad I did.  It meant that I got to know my grandmother a little better before she passed, and I wasn’t left with guilt that I’d neglected her in her later years.  I still feel a bit in the middle about it at times but I just tell people to respect the that fact, and to be fair, nobody tries to make it difficult for me.
I’d been meaning to arrange time with my cousin to go see that side of the family but Xmas has just caught up with me.  But luckily, my cousin text me yesterday and so we arranged for me to go and catch up with them today.  It was a long drive but totally worth it.
We probably don’t meet up as much as we should but, you know what, I bother where others on my side of the family don’t.  And it’s lovely catching up with everyone and just hanging out.  My family is a little daft and I love that about them, so there’s always a multitude of stories and silliness.
(Xmas spoiler alert I always buy books for them for xmas and I spend a lot of time trying to find books I think they’d really, really enjoy.  Seriously, if you are ever stuck for a gift for someone, searching out a great book you think they’ll love is rewarding in itself.  And when they come back having found a favourite new series or author as a result, that’s a bonus.
So I was glad that I made this happen again this year with my cousin’s help as it would just be so easy to lose contact.
I left mid-afternoon and rushed back as I was having my friend Craig over.  We only met a couple of months ago, he lives on the same estate as me, and we just clicked so much it’s unbelievable.  I feel like I’ve known him for years.  He’ll come over, I cook for him, he’ll make tea and bring cakes, we’ll watch TV and just have such a laugh.  In a year that’s been so absolutely gruelling and relentless, having made a friend who just makes me relax and laugh by his sheer presence has been one of my highlights of the year.
We watched Bright, which reminded me so much of the sort of stuff I’d write 7 or so years ago.  It’s was good, but not great in my opinion.  But we had turkey curry and my xmas sausage rolls I made, made LEGO, played War of Warship, laughed and chatted until 4am.
I don’t have to be anywhere early tomorrow so it didn’t really matter as despite being a very long day it was so great to be able to spend it with people who are so special to me.  That’s what Xmas really is about, and today really has put me in the xmas spirit.
If you want to follow more of my journey, then be sure to check me on my social channels.  Likewise, if you’d like me to expand on any point mentioned above, please say so in the comments.

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