Writes Kem Ormond

Christmas should be a time to enjoy family, wind down, enjoy the beach, relax, and indulge in some summer foodie treats and recharge us after a busy year.

We all seem to get busier and busier and seem to have more and more we have to cram into a day. . . well that is what I find anyway.

Children, parents, grandparents, we try to give them an equal share of our time, but it is not always easy. Then we have friends, aunts, uncles, and siblings who we also want to catch up with.

With my only sibling living overseas and children either on the other side of the world or not local,

I have over the years divided my time with assisting the Community Christmas lunch, enjoying a cold wintery Christmas overseas, a Christmas picnic at the beach or visiting parents in rest homes.

Christmas morning at a rest home is often busy with families coming and going, picking up relations or calling to say hello and dropping off tasty treats and flowers.

Last year I had Christmas lunch with one of my parents who is in a rest home. There was Christmas music but no Snoopy’s Christmas much to my disappointment, the paper hats were far too big for the residents and assistance was needed to pull the crackers, but there was a sense of excitement in the air as all the residents sat at their decorated tables for their special Christmas lunch.

There were two other residents at the table I sat at and for them it was out with the water and in with the wine. Plates filled to the brim; they were pleased to have another guest at their table who was a little chattier than the norm.

I laughed at the tales they told of my mother’s dislike for peas and vegetables and how she is not a great lover of food. . . they really spilled the beans!

With a taste for spicy food, the lightly seasoned food was a challenge, but the residents enjoyed it and dessert was a selection of all their favourites. I would say come afternoon everyone would have been in a deep afternoon slumber!

It is not easy when you have parents or family in a rest home, but please think of them as Christmas approaches. Visiting the week leading up to Christmas can be easier for both you and your loved one and it is so nice to add some Christmas flare to their surroundings.

Even a brief visit to see them would make such a difference to their day. If they are mobile, take them for a walk or even sit in the garden at the rest home and have a chat.

Why not bring some fun balloons and bunting and a small decoration for their room. Restock their sweet jar for when other visitors come to visit them and if you have time,

spend lunch with them if the rest home can accommodate. That hour spent with your mum, dad or relation will mean so much to them.

Then it can be off to other relations to continue the festivities.

Christmas is a time for family and friends, sharing and caring. We have all been through a lot over the past few years and this is a perfect time to enjoy our loved ones.