There are more spaces around the table

Christmas marks the passage of time, the end of every year, and Louise O’Neill feels no differently about the season. Here she talks about the changes occurring as the Christmases go by.

I come from a family that loves Christmas. My sister, a primary school teacher, seems to hit peak excitement at around the same rate as the five year olds in her class.

I get Snapchat updates every time she feels in the holiday spirit - when she sees the Coca-Cola ad for the first time, when the festive milk cartons hit the shelves, when she finds the perfect pair of Elf-earrings that ‘her boys’ are going to freak out over.