Christmas went well, actually better than expected and that makes you appreciate family.No matter how close or distant you are to them, at times they prove to be lifesavers.Christmassy feelings fade in the light of the general hype accompanying Christmas and at times I begin to wonder whether a peaceful and quiet Christmas without the now requisite orgy of celebrations is possible. I am all for the celebrations of all festivals and i also believe that no festival should be restricted to a religion however these days the true spirit of festivals seems to be being forgotten with everything having become a sound, lights and pyrotechnics event. Whether to blame the media, commercialization of festivals by individuals, religious leaders who seem to encourage closed minds or an unknown entity that I dont know, I know not but what I know is that I preferred the old style of celebrations where peace accompanied a festival and no festival was a game of one upmanship. Maybe I am growing older faster than I should but then there seems to be no solution for it either.