Dreading Christmas gatherings? You must go, says Rachel Johnson – who always says yes
When I lie on my deathbed, I can promise you this. My last words will never register any regret when it comes to one thing. I will never clutch at my pink candlewick bedspread in my care home and exhale, ‘I wish I’d gone to more parties. Even more Christmas parties.’ Like Churchill when it comes to alcohol, I have taken more out of parties than they have taken out of me. If I’m invited, my instinct – as when it comes to most things – is to accept. It’s genetic. I don’t think I’ve ever heard my father, Stanley, use the word ‘no’ and, like my ubiquitous, genial and energetic surviving parent, I am the definition of a yes person and have this learning to pass on. Always say yes to parties. If you decline or cancel at the last minute, this is the aching void you will be...
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