Seasons Greetings
By Steve Carter
On the first day of Christmas, my true love said to me, ‘can you get up in the attic and bring down the tree and boxes of decorations?’
Now, this is where the magic of Christmas starts for me, but not for the reasons that you might think. You see 11 months ago, I put that tree and associated boxes of decorations back up in the attic in the designated area which, by the way is sizeable, containing enough products to open a pop up shop, which means I know how many boxes are there, and how they were laid out. As if by magic, the quantity of boxes has grown in the intervening months. Now unless Santa and the fairy have had some fun, there is only one other logical answer, but I dare not enquire as to why we need additional baubles, light up reindeer or whatever else has been added, I just get on with it.
Having dutifully retrieved all of the Christmas paraphernalia and laid them out, I will be quickly dispatched to the local hostelry for a few ales, so that I am not in the way of the military operation that will follow. I tread rather dejectedly through the door, until I am out of sight and the pace quickens up remarkedly. When I return some hours later, the place is like a winter wonderland, to which my contribution was to get the boxes down.
On the second day of Christmas, my true love said to me, ‘people are starting to ask what you want for Christmas, you are so awkward to buy for.’ Not wishing to be a burden on our relatives shopping lists, I give a nod towards my dwindling supply of real ale in the garage, or hint that a dine and drink voucher would be most acceptable. You might think there is a theme building here and you would be absolutely right.
Joking aside, this is the time of year when I love to see my family, friends and colleagues coming together and enjoying themselves. That said, I am also mindful that not everybody is as lucky as I am and may be spending Christmas alone. For many years, I knew an elderly lady and every year I would pop round with a card and a box of chocolates. One day her only son called me and said, ‘you don’t know how much that means to my mum, that you have never forgotten her.’ Something that was small to me, meant the world to somebody else. I felt very humbled.
From the whole Advantia team, can I wish you and your families a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
If you’d like to know more about how you can become part of the wider Advantia team then please do contact us today for a friendly chat.