WELLNESS
KEEPING THE PEACE
Rosie Green offers her advice for staying calm when the reality of a family Christmas fails to live up to expectations
Christmas is a time of year when the gap between expectation and reality widens to a chasm. The dream is a content family in Ralph Lauren-esque garb merrily chatting around a beautifully tablescaped dinner. This meal will be sophisticated and served at the perfect temperature. Afterwards, you will open a present from your beloved that makes your heart leap.
When this is very much not the case – think squabbling siblings, cremated sprouts and a practical gift (despite your request for nothing with a plug) – it can be crushing. Add to this in-laws who want you to accommodate their traditions (horrifying because, as we all know, the way your family does Christmas is the only way) and you have relationship friction.