Presents are unwrapped. Chocolates munched. A giant turkey dinner with all the trimmings devoured. The queen’s Christmas address is watched, and the national anthem emotionally hummed to. Then I usher the kids out to get some fresh air, which none of them want, but they are nicer for it. They all have to do some jobs every day and Christmas is no different. This way they learn about duties and responsibilities. Working makes the food and family times later in the day more meaningful: we have earned the rest through work, not idleness. I’d hate not to work at Christmas.

James Rebanks

Part of savoring Christmas is learning about other people’s Christmas traditions, whether at the dinner table or through a book.

Rebanks, James. The Shepherd’s Life: Modern Dispatches from an Ancient Landscape. United States, Flatiron Books, 2015. pg 228, 229

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