The Day After

Our First Aussie Christmas Dinner came and went.

Did we have a good time? You bet.

The day before, I had spent some time mentally gearing up for the event. You see, I'm one of those very private types who doesn't enjoy parties or chatting with strangers. I prefer hanging out with people I know and having everything low key, tasteful and comfy. So this year, I decided to approach the matter with a different mindset. Bearing in mind the lesson of Mary and Martha, I decided to place Grace and Hospitality above all else, and especially above the minutiae of whether the turkey would turn out well and whether there would be sufficient cutlery, plates and seats for all the guests.

The result? Everything went beautifully. CA had to work the whole of Sat, but Hui Mei was able to come over in the afternoon to give me a hand, and what a great help she was! From bringing extra plates and cutlery to rescuing the delinquent turkey that rolled off the grill, to removing the foil wrapping so I could baste it (as per instructions), to deciding how and when to pop in the potatoes for roasting, to deciding whether the cherry tomatoes should be added to the salad whole or halved...she was there. On top of that, she brought a lovely fruit cake which she'd been up till 3 am baking, and thoughtfully added 2 side dishes of roasted olives and a mushroom and celery salad so that her housemate Alice (who's vegetarian) would have extra food options.

When Alice and Amy came, so did more food! Amy had baked 3 loaves of bread that were still warm when we unwrapped the tea towels they came in. There was onion, sundried tomato and a plain loaf. They were the perfect entree and went beautifully with the dips we had on hand: HM's spring onion dip, and our hummous and cheese spread. Yums.

Of course, there was too much ham...and tons of leftovers. There always is! HM took home a container of ham, and we used some of the rest today at lunch, in the form of a ham-and-mushroom omelette.

More importantly, we had great fun. It was my first time meeting Alice and Amy, and I was just fascinated by their personalities, their work stories, their backgrounds (Alice is from NZ, Amy's from interstate - Canberra I think?) and their connection with HM. It was like being invited into their little world.

And Beth had great fun playing with Zhao'en. His pal Leonard's car broke down, so he came by train....and had a very long ride home to Box Hill!

We're so thankful for all these friends who made the effort to come and share in our first Aussie Christmas Dinner.

That's what it's about in the end isn't it, the spirit of giving and sharing of food, company and laughter with friends and family.

Blessed Christmas everyone!