Reflection

– There is always something of a lull at this point of the festivities.
– How do you mean, a lull?
– Well, you know, a lull. A slight hiatus in the emotional roller-coaster of Yuletide celebrations, as we slowly recover from the excesses of Christmas Day and look forward to the excesses of New Year's Eve.
– Of course. I guess it's quite a good idea having a lull: things would get rather wearing otherwise. Constant feasting and partying takes it out of you. However much you practise. Anyway, I quite like this time of year: you feel you are in between things, as if the old year has already ended and the new one not yet begun. A sort of hinterland. Do I mean hinterland?
– I've no idea.
– Especially being off work, as fortunately I am. You have all these days stretching emptily before you, with no need to rush out of the house in the morning, no need even to traipse around the shops, as, conveniently, the fridge is still packed with all the food you didn't get around to eating over Christmas.
– There's always the January sales to lure you out.
– I manage to resist them. The thought of being trampled by hoards of carnivorous bargain-hunters is not very appealing. I would rather have a few hours of quiet refection than a half-price sweater in a colour that makes me feel queasy. It takes time, you know, to take stock of the passing of the year and to make resolutions for the future.
– So have you made any resolutions?
– Not yet. I don't like rushing in to major commitments.