To everyone who has supported our Behind the Hilt community, thank you! 🙂
There is a particular kind of hush and calm that has settled over my world this December. Long Covid has left me exhausted and it got to the point where I realised that the only way to start healing would be to just stop burning the candle at both ends and focus on myself rather than the majority of other things.
This year, as many of you sit in yet another traffic jam, I assume that the radio stations will be playing “Driving Home for Christmas”, as we sadly learned that Chris Rea, the voice behind that familiar melody, has passed away at the age of 74 on Monday. His bluesy and heartfelt music has been the soundtrack to so many festive journeys and quiet moments by the fire. This track will always be one of those songs that makes me look out of the car window and feel the comfort of returning home to a warm house without having to worry that someone is going to ram into the back of the car. So let this year’s playlist be a soft tribute and a way to hold both light and nostalgia close.
This community has been built with care, connection and joy, and you have brought that to life every week. Behind the Hilt would not be the same without your conversations, your thoughtful shares, the ideas you bring and the way you let one another feel seen. Even when life tosses in surprises or pauses, you show up with heart. Thank you for being here.
In the spirit of keeping things Fifi style, if Christmas had a perfume it would be “Ange ou Demon”, one of my long term favourites, and if the holidays were a cocktail, they would be equal parts laughter with close friends, toasted marshmallows over Steve’s firepit and that tiny bit of warmth that stays with you long after you’re back home. We are all a little bit Mary Poppins at this time of year, hopeful, reflective and wonderfully human.
Whatever your tradition and however you spend these days, my wish is this. May your Christmas be soft around the edges, bright in the memories you make and filled with the warmth that comes from simply being present, with yourself, with others and with the songs that feel like home.
Thank you for the support, the laughter, the shared stories and the kindness. Here is to a peaceful Christmas that is gentle, musical and just a little bit magical.
With warmth with us all at Behind The Hilt.
