It seems like the end of the year arrives faster every year. And for many, that comes with preparations for the festive season.
My family often congregates to celebrate Christmas together in the Valley, with my parents’ home becoming a kind of country getaway for my Sydney and Canberra relatives.
For me and many others, Christmas has become synonymous with family.
Holly Boyle lives in Annandale, Sydney, and treasures being able to spend Christmas with her family in Kangaroo Valley each year.
“This year I’ll be with Mum, Jaxon, Con, Grandma and her husband, Teeka and Mojo, (her family dogs), and angel Dad…I can’t imagine being anywhere else.”
She continues, “Being surrounded by everyone I love is what makes Christmas feel truly complete…it’s about the people, the memories, and the comfort of being home.”
Boyle recalls one of her most memorable Christmas moments, receiving her puppy, Teeka, when she was nine or ten years old.
“I had begged for a dog every single Christmas for as long as I could remember. I woke up at the crack of dawn, as kids do on Christmas morning, and felt something soft hit me. At first, I thought my mum had tossed a stuffed animal at me—but then I realised it was a tiny Border Collie puppy, jumping up to give me a Christmas kiss.” Boyle reflects.
“She’s like my soulmate in dog form and having her by my side has been one of life’s greatest gifts. That Christmas will always be a special one, the day a little puppy changed our lives for the better.”
I can relate to how, since moving out of home, time seems to pass more quickly. It really makes me appreciate my trips back to the Valley and being able to see my relatives.
“Growing up feels like it happens in the blink of an eye—you go from spending every day with family to only a handful of times a year.” Boyle states.
“There’s a bittersweetness in that, but it makes these moments even more special.”
Considering my own experiences, it made me wonder what it would be like to be away from home at this time of year.
Lili Johnson has been travelling for a year and a half and is currently living in Banff, Canada. Having celebrated Christmas in Laos with her family in 2022, she is no stranger to spending the holiday overseas. This will be her 3rd Christmas away from home, and her second Christmas spent without her mum, dad, and siblings.
“It’s become pretty normal for me,” she says.
Johnson started her overseas travels in America in 2023, working at a Summer Camp. She then went solo travelling in Europe for six weeks before moving to Canada. Having been away for so long, she has had to celebrate some of her family members’ significant milestones from afar.
“I don’t think Christmas is as hard-hitting as some of the other things I’ve missed,” she says.
“I couldn’t be there when my little brother turned 18, I wasn’t at my sister’s university graduation from the Australian Defence Force Academy, I didn’t wait at the finish line when Dad finished his 15-hour kayak race, and I haven’t given my mum a hug in 18 months.”
Nonetheless, Christmas is a particularly difficult day of year for Johnson.
“Christmas is the holiday that brings everyone back together after another long year. So, in that way Christmas is an extra tough day for me, living so far away from the four people I saw every single day for the first 18 years of my life.”
She reflects on the special details that make her family’s Christmas their own.
“I will miss the Aussie summer heat and the sun! I will miss the prawns and pavlova, and Mum making us play games together. I will miss being able to all hop in the car and drive to Upper River…. I will miss talking to my younger cousins about school and life, experiencing what my siblings and I already had a few years before them. I will miss catching up with my aunties and uncles and telling them my life plans. I will miss Granny Jojo and I getting into trouble for always picking at the food before it’s ready. I will miss the afternoon food coma, and Dad taking a few hours after lunch to nap before emerging again.”
However, throughout her travels she has formed incredible relationships, providing comfort in new, unfamiliar places.
“I’ve made a group of friends who are my family over here in Canada and I’ve been travelling on and off with my best friend for the past two years, so she provides a little piece of home for me,” she explains.
“Everyone is in the same boat, travelling and missing their families, so we come together and create our own version of family, which makes being away from home 100 times easier.”
Aside from the difficulties of missing family, Johnson’s Christmas plans this year sound nothing short of magical.
“On Christmas Day we will likely have mimosas for breakfast and go snowboarding all day, then come back and have a big potluck homemade Christmas dinner and exchange presents!”
