Well, possible relapse to one side, I am sadly excited to report I have Christmas all wrapped up.
This time last year, I was ‘lucky’. I was on my second course of steroids for yet another relapse and I was flying. I couldn’t sleep, I had extreme amounts of energy and I was absolutely buzzing. I would wake at 4am every morning and, possessed with a demon drive, I wouldn’t get to sleep til gone midnight. My house has never been so clean – all that energy had to go somewhere.
The lightbulbs were dusted, the skirting boards washed down and every single bit of cutlery cleaned to within an inch of its life. I put the tree up one morning at 5am. It was fully decorated and lit by 6am. I whizzed around supermarkets, wrote endless lists and had everything planned with military precision. Only problem was, once the steroids had left my system, I was a rag doll, limp and lifeless, with a fixed grin on my face.
This year, I have fulfilled my steroid quota, so no bonus energy for me. With that in mind, and with the spectre of a relapse still looming (is it or isn’t it, darn it??), I need to get Christmas sorted, just in case. So yesterday, I finished my present shopping, chose wrapping paper and tasteful ribbon and even rounded the trip off with a quick visit to Starbucks, The Teenager in tow. I had bribed him with a chocolate shortbread and one of those strawberry drinks with squirty cream on top.
This Christmas, the theme in my house is ‘Scandinavian Minimalism’, cleverly hiding the fact I have no energy to loop endless decorations onto a huge tree. I bought two small trees and decorated them simply, with lots of white lights and nothing else. I found a sculpture of a reindeer made from driftwood and will be wearing a Sarah Lund jumper for most of December. I will disguise my tiredness with Nordic gloominess and a contemplative demeanor. Meatballs and cloudberry juice will be served, along with almond biscuits and salted liquorice.
One thought keeps recurring though. Can I save up my steroid quota next year and use them at Christmas? Mandatory steroids for all those with MS! A new campaign? Right, where’s the Akavit? God Jul!