Editorial:
“It’s beginning to cost a lot like Christmas.”
A lovely gentleman made that joke to me the other day as he walked along Broadway with his arms full of bags. And he’s right - this time of year can feel like a never-ending shopping list, from secret Santa gifts for children’s classmates to family dinners and barbecues, boxes of chocolates and beers for tradies, to paying triple the original price on a secondhand site for the latest “must-have” (and therefore sold out by October) toy, the bills just keep coming.
But, to quote my favourite fictional character, Charlie Brown, “it’s not what’s under the Christmas tree that matters, it’s who is around it”.
He’s right of course, but knowing that - or even saying it three times in a row while clicking your red-heeled shoes together in true Dorothy style - doesn’t change the fact that this time of year comes with a lot of pressure and expectation. It’s not just cost either - between school nativity plays and carol services, end-of-year prizegivings, sports club Christmas parties, work dos and Christmas parades, it can feel like a mad gallop through the days from December 1 to 25.