Tag: Christmas Calendar Countdown

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Countdown to Christmas Day 6

a Christmas gift

December 6, 2025 – 19 Days to Christmas

A Christmas Gift

A Christmas Story: The Spa Day That Went Sideways

For Lesley

By the time Claire Dubois signed her divorce papers on December 18th, she felt as if she had spent five years inside a malfunctioning emotional blender—one of those noisy, lid-jumping contraptions with several warning labels and a tendency to splatter carrot puree on the ceiling. So when her three closest friends—Sophie, Marianne, and Elodie—announced they were taking her to Bagnères-de-Bigorre for a spa day to celebrate her newfound freedom, Claire didn’t protest. She needed heat. She needed pampering. She needed steam, serenity, and something resembling a full nervous system reboot before facing Christmas dinner with her well-meaning but relentlessly nosy family.

The drive to the Pyrenees felt like slipping inside a snow globe. Fresh powder dusted the mountain peaks like royal icing on a gingerbread landscape. The air smelled of pine resin, wood smoke, and cold stone. Christmas lights twinkled from the windows of wooden chalets along the road—reds and golds reflecting off the snow—and somewhere in the distance a church bell chimed Adeste Fideles, muffled by the crisp mountain air. Roadside vendors sold roasted chestnuts and vin chaud from steaming pots. By the time the four women arrived at the thermal spa—its elegant stone façade rising out of the valley, draped in garlands of pine and white lights—Claire felt her shoulders finally unclench.

Which was, of course, the moment the day started slipping sideways.

Inside the spa, a calming soundtrack of flutes and trickling water played, occasionally interrupted by instrumental versions of Christmas carols that made “Silent Night” sound like meditation music. Miniature Christmas trees dotted the reception area, their ornaments catching the soft amber light. Each locker offered a neatly folded white cocoon of terry cloth. Sophie’s and Marianne’s looked plush enough to double as duvets. Claire’s XXXS version looked like it had shrunk in the wash—or been designed for an unusually modest elf. She tried to put it on anyway. It wrapped around her torso with all the generosity of a disgruntled dish towel. Her left hip staged an immediate escape attempt. Elodie took one look and doubled over laughing, loud enough to attract stares from two indignant retirees in matching terry cloth, attempting to preserve the sanctity of spa silence. Claire couldn’t help it—she had to laugh too, the kind of laughter that bubbled up unexpectedly like champagne.

She marched to the reception, one hand clamped across her chest to preserve her dignity (and modesty, although why she bothers…), the other attempting to hold the robe closed. The receptionist, without even blinking, sighed as though this was a daily occurrence and murmured, “Oh. Yes. Er, our apologies.” She disappeared into a back room and returned with a robe so enormous Claire could have hosted a community meeting inside it. But it fit, and it was warm, and smelled faintly of cinnamon. Disaster averted.

Robe secured, the four friends floated toward the outdoor thermal pool. Steam rose in soft curtains from the turquoise water, backlit by strings of white lights wound through the surrounding pine trees. Snowflakes drifted from the grey winter sky, melting the instant they touched the surface. The air smelled of minerals and eucalyptus, with an undertone of mulled wine from the spa bar, a scent suggesting festive promise. Claire lowered herself into the water and felt it envelop her like a warm exhale from the earth itself.

“This is bliss,” she sighed, leaning back. “This I could get used to.”

The universe, hearing her, chuckled and said, “Hold my spiced cider.”

Just as Claire began to relax, a sudden roar erupted behind her. Before she could turn around, something flew across the water. Her robe. The huge, heavy, comforting robe she had laid neatly on the pool’s edge was now spinning in the water like a squid being sucked toward the filtration intake. She lunged for it. She missed. People turned. A few applauded. The lifeguard—wearing a Santa hat over his regulation cap—sighed, retrieved a long pole, and began fishing for it with resigned professionalism. When he finally hauled it out, limp, dripping and drowned, the receptionist materialised at her side with another, working hard to keep her face straight.

Her friends were laughing so hard they could barely stay afloat, which made Claire laugh too—big, helpless, ridiculous laughter that made her cheeks hurt. The kind she hadn’t felt in far too long.

They eventually staggered their way to the hammam, decorated with a small garland of eucalyptus and holly above the entrance. Inside, the steam was so thick Claire couldn’t see the bench in front of her, the walls around her, or the limits of her own personal space. Voices echoed strangely in the fog, disembodied. Someone murmured “over here,” and Claire, imagining she was moving toward Marianne, took a confident step forward, reached out, and sat down.

On a stranger.

A very startled, very unclothed stranger.

His shocked gasp cut through the steam like a foghorn. A moment later, the steam parted enough for Claire to see his horrified eyes, wide as poached eggs. Claire yelped, jumped up, slipped on condensation, and skidded across the tile floor with the helpless momentum of a baby deer encountering ice for the first time. Somewhere behind her, her friends dissolved again into uncontrollable laughter—the sort that suggested they might need medical attention.

The man coughed. “Is okay,” he wheezed. “I think… you break no bones?”

“My dignity,” Claire said, “is in traction.”

After the hammam debacle, they attempted lunch. The spa café smelled promising: roasted chestnuts, mulled wine, something buttery and cinnamon-spiced. A small Christmas tree stood in the corner, its lights twinkling hopefully. But their soup—described enthusiastically by the waitress as “rustic, warming, a heritage recipe from the mountains”—arrived as a beige, flavourless puddle that somehow managed to be the exact opposite of every comforting winter meal promised by the season. They seasoned it. They stirred it. They attempted to coax character out of it. Nothing helped. Sophie said, “It tastes like my last relationship: bland, lukewarm, and profoundly disappointing.” Finally, Elodie announced, “It tastes like beige had a personality and lost it halfway through therapy. Beyond redemption.”

At sunset, they finally made their way to the rooftop hot tub. Steam curled into the cold winter sky. The Pyrenean peaks blushed pink and peach as daylight faded, their snow-covered slopes glowing like they’d been dusted with silver. In the distance, church bells chimed. Claire felt herself melt into the warm water, into the moment, in the presence of the three women who had held her up through the darkest season of her life.

“I thought today was supposed to be calming,” she smiled.

“Oh, it was never going to be calm,” Sophie replied. “We don’t do calm. We do… memorable.”

“Thank you,” Claire said. “For today. For all of it. A Christmas gift I’ll never forget. For making sure I didn’t spend Christmas week crying while binging on not-yet-discounted chocolate.”

“Even though everything went wrong?” Sophie asked.

“Because everything went wrong. My marriage was about everything going right. Perfect plans, perfect image, perfect relationship. Perfect Christmases with matching sweaters and colour-coordinated gift wrap. And it was hell.” She paused, watching a snowflake land on her finger and melt. “This was about everything going wrong. And it was perfect.”

They clinked plastic spa cups of spicy herbal tea together.

Marianne proposed, “To the worst spa day ever.”

“To freedom,” Sophie toasted.

“To questionable spa etiquette,” Elodie added.

“To friendship,” Claire whispered. “

Today’s post in 2024

Today, be the friend who shows up when needed. Don’t wait for the perfect moment or the perfect Christmas gift. Just show up—and create the messy, imperfect memory.
Worst case scenario: Nothing goes to plan, someone sits on a stranger in a hammam, and you all eat terrible soup while questioning your life choices.
Best case scenario: Years later, when your friend thinks about that difficult Christmas, they won’t remember the pain as much as they remember you—showing up with ridiculous robes and refusing to let them face it alone, turning the worst spa day ever into the moment they realised that love looks like friends who stay through no matter what goes wrong.

The Making Friends and Maintaining Friendships Masterplan

Christmas reminds us of the joy of giving, but sometimes, we hesitate. In our friendships, we often hold back. We hesitate before reaching out, before offering help, before being the first to say “I’m thinking of you.” We worry about seeming needy, or too much, or like we care more than they do.

True generosity in friendship isn’t transactional. It’s not a ledger that needs balancing by year-end. It’s the quiet decision to reach out simply because you want to—because someone matters to you, because connection itself is the reward, because giving from genuine affection needs no return on investment.

Forget the perfect Christmas gift. A small act of kindness—a thoughtful message at 11 PM because something reminded you of them, a shared memory that says “remember when we laughed until we couldn’t breathe?”, a surprise gesture that requires no occasion beyond “I saw this and thought of you”—these moments carry more weight than we realise. They brighten someone’s day in ways you might never witness.

This Christmas season, be the friend who reaches out first.

Sometimes the greatest gift we give is letting someone know they’re worth the effort.

What questions can you ask to get to know a new friend? How do you know if you and a new friend are really compatible? I have created a set of light-hearted quizzes, quotes and questions to help you do just that. Just fill in the form below and you’ll get immediate access to them all. I’ll also add you to my newsletter list, though you can unsubscribe from this list effortlessly and at any time. Included:

– How well do you know your Friends? Quiz

– What is Your Friendship Style? and Are your Friendship Styles compatible? Quiz

– 20 of the Most Inspiring Friends and Friendship Quotes and

– 20 lighthearted Questions you can ask to get to know a new Friend

Discover how to build meaningful, lasting friendships and create a support system that truly has your back—delivered straight to your inbox!

Today’s (Other) Blog Post

High-Functioning Burnout Symptoms: I Looked Fine on the Outside, But Inside I Was Falling Apart

Designed for those navigating a life transition, the Radical Renaissance Protocol guides you through an identity reset, helping you reconnect with your purpose, realign your values, and reclaim the clarity you thought you’d lost. This isn’t about fixing what’s broken: through reflection, strategic reinvention, and soul-anchored mentoring, you’ll transform uncertainty into direction and dormant potential into meaningful impact.

If your soul is craving fresh air, meaningful movement, and a chance to reconnect with nature, join us on a Camino de Santiago Crossroads Retreat in the southwest of France. This isn’t just a scenic hike – it’s a powerful, natural reboot for your body, mind, and spirit. Imagine quiet paths, rolling hills, cozy evenings, and slow conversations. No fitness requirements. No forced bonding. No pressure to have a breakthrough. Just one foot in front of the other, and a journey that meets you exactly where you are.

Author Bio: Dr Margaretha Montagu – described as a “game changer”, “gifted healer”, “guiding light” and “life-enriching author” – is an experienced medical doctor, a certified NLP practitioner, a medical hypnotherapist, an equine-assisted psychotherapist (EAGALAcertified) and a transformational retreat leader who guides her clients through life transitions – virtually, or with the assistance of her Friesian and Falabella horses, at their home in the southwest of France.

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Countdown to Christmas Calendar Day 5

relocation

December 5, 2025 – 20 Days to Christmas

Relocation to Paris

Today’s Story: Priya’s Paris Relocation

The moment Priya stepped into the “3ème Soirée Annuelle de Networking & Canapés de Noël”—an event title that sounded like a hostile takeover of her free time, now with added French pretension—she knew she’d made a mistake.

The Marais loft glowed with fairy lights strung between exposed wooden beams, and smelled of mulled wine and those expensive beeswax candles that people light when they are trying too hard. Through the tall windows, she could see the December drizzle turning the cobblestones below into dark mirrors. People were already clustering in tight conversational pods, their laughter too loud, their talk bouncing between English and French as they discussed Q4 projections and something called “strategic disruptions pendant les fêtes.”

A man in a blazer, the exact shade of a bruised plum, wearing a tiny Santa hat at a jaunty angle, materialised beside her. He looked like a Christmas ornament that had achieved sentience and a six-figure salary at a consulting firm.

“Champagne, ou peut-être un ‘Mistletini’—it’s 90% gin and 10% potential indigestion!” he chirped in that particular Franco-English accent that suggested international business school and expensive ski holidays.

She took a glass. Bubbles hit her nose, making her sneeze. Velvet Plum Blazer took a quick step back. “Santé,” he said, then vanished faster than he appeared.

Priya wished she could vanish too—maybe dissolve into the mist outside and reform somewhere less aggressively festive.

Don’t overthink it, she told herself. You’re a grown woman. You’ve survived corporate take-overs and layoffs, three terrible bosses, and that time you accidentally replied-all to a company-wide email about your cat’s digestive issues. You can survive two hours of forced merriment in a foreign city where you’re still not entirely sure which bises situations require two cheek-kisses or three. Or four?

She executed a tactical retreat to the groaning food table—her natural habitat at any social event—and formed a strategic alliance with a platter of mini-quiches shaped like tiny wreaths and some suspiciously fancy foie gras on toast points that probably cost more than her monthly rent.

She was chewing thoughtfully (or buying time—hard to say) when she heard it. The question. The social landmine. The six words that could instantly turn a festive gathering into an existential dread-fest.

“So, what do you do?”

Her jaw froze mid-chew. She turned to find a smiling woman wearing a sweater featuring a reindeer in an Eiffel Tower scarf—the kind of knitwear that announced “I’m whimsical but also serious about networking.” She had the festive confidence of someone who owned a separate set of Christmas napkins and knew exactly which arrondissement had the best Christmas markets.

Priya tried to stall, pointing at the quiche in her mouth. The woman waited, her smile unwavering with that particularly French patience that feels both generous and vaguely judgmental.

Arrrgh.

This was where she usually deployed one of her practised evasions: “It’s complicated,” or “I’m between things,” or the magical word “Consulting”—a word that meant absolutely nothing but usually impressed people into silence, especially when said in Paris, where everyone claimed to be consulting about something, at any given time.

But tonight, with the rain softly tapping against the windows and the distant bells of Notre-Dame chiming the hour, she was tired. Tired of pretending, tired of dodging, tired of shaping herself into something acceptable for strangers who probably wouldn’t remember her name by the time the accordion version of “Douce Nuit” ended.

She gulped down the quiche.

“I am currently a professional consumer of artisanal holiday snacks,” Priya deadpanned.

The woman blinked.

Priya considered spontaneously combusting on the spot, or possibly throwing herself into the Seine, whichever would be quicker.

Then the woman laughed—a real, booming, un-corporate laugh that made three people stop discussing their stock options and smoothly move on to the best boulangeries in the 16th.

She lifted her glass. “Welcome to the club. I quit my job as a ‘Chief Optimisation Strategist’ to become a ‘Senior Executive of Existential Dread.’ Relocated to Paris, thinking the wine and cheese would fix me. Jury’s still out.”

Priya exhaled so sharply her bangs fluttered. “You did?”

“Yup,” Reindeer-sweater Woman said. “After fourteen years of pretending I loved optimising regional workflow systems. My soul escaped by faking its own death and mailing me a postcard from Provence. It said ‘Bisous‘ and nothing else.”

Priya snorted. “Félicitations to that.”

They clinked glasses and migrated toward a quieter corner near a potted plant and a window overlooking the rain-slicked street below, where the Christmas lights reflected in puddles like scattered stars. A man in a beret walked past with a baguette under his arm—so stereotypically Parisian that Priya wondered if he was performance art.

“I’m Maya, by the way.”

“Priya.”

“So,” Maya said, sliding into a vintage velvet armchair with the elegance of someone abandoning all pretence, “how’s your quarter-life, mid-life, two-thirds-life crisis going? Mine is currently focused by the terrifying realisation that I don’t know how to do anything but make pivot tables. Turns out that’s not a transferable skill for Parisian dinner parties.”

Priya laughed, startled. “Honestly? I think I’m in the renegotiation period of the ceasefire between Me and My Expectations. I’m demanding better terms. Possibly in French, for dramatic effect.”

Maya raised her glass. “To demanding better terms. À nos projets flous et terrifiants.”

Priya settled beside her. The chair sighed under the weight of her honesty. Outside, the city twinkled—the Eiffel Tower doing its hourly sparkle show in the distance, because even infrastructure here was dramatic. She took a breath. “I thought leaving my job would make things clearer. Like the universe would hand me a neatly labelled folder: ‘Priya’s New Purpose—Action Items Inside.’ Instead, I’m… here. In Paris. At a party. Eating expensive quiche and pretending I understand when people switch mid-sentence to French.”

“I get it,” Maya said. “I spent ten years working toward a corner office. Then I finally got it, sat in the leather chair, looked out over the city and thought, ‘Ah. I think I might have made a horrible, irreversible mistake.’ So I moved to Paris, thinking geographical relocation would solve existential problems. Spoiler: it doesn’t. But the bread is better.”

“Ten years for one uncomfortable chair?”

Maya nodded solemnly. “It was ergonomic, which is corporate code for ‘will slowly destroy your spine in a very expensive way.’ The Paris version has better stuffing but the same soul-crushing vibe.”

Something warm started expanding in Priya’s chest, competing with the mulled wine. “It’s just… everyone else seems so certain. I tell people I left my job, and they congratulate me like I just climbed Everest. But then they ask what’s next, and when I say ‘I don’t know,’ they stare at me like I’ve confessed to burning down the Galeries Lafayette Christmas display.”

Maya tilted her head, her reindeer-Eiffel earrings swaying. “Priya, look around. This entire place is filled with people pretending they have A PLAN. Some do. But a lot of them are one minor inconvenience—like running out of champagne or discovering their Navigo pass expired—away from Googling ‘What’s my real purpose in life?‘ just like the rest of us.”

Priya followed her gaze. The confidently networking people looked a little different now—less intimidating. Slightly panicked, even, beneath the curated glow of ambition and the blinking Santa hats perched atop perfectly styled French haircuts.

“Huh,” Priya said. “Maybe none of us really knows what we’re doing. We’re just doing it in nicer cities.”

They fell into the kind of conversation that feels like slipping on warm, well-worn slippers—cozy, unpretentious, safe. They talked about old dreams, lost passions, the terrifying thrill of blank calendars, and the existential dread of absent LinkedIn notifications. Maya confessed she’d been in Paris for three months and still couldn’t figure out which day her building’s concierge speaks to people. Priya admitted she’d cried in a boulangerie last week because she couldn’t remember the word for croissant(?!) and just pointed desperately while the baker looked confused and slightly concerned.

They shared their fears, too.

“What if I never figure it out?” Priya whispered.

Maya shrugged softly. “Figuring it out might be a tad… overrated. The French have been philosophically unsure about everything for centuries, and they seem fine. Well, fine-ish. They have 300 varieties of cheese to help them cope.”

That landed somewhere deep. Priya swallowed.

“I watch a lot of TED Talks,” Maya said dryly. “Two and a half, and suddenly I’m Yoda. Un Yoda parisien avec un béret rouge.”

They sat in companionable silence, two strangers who’d become something more—companions in the strange, brave wilderness between endings and beginnings, sitting in a Marais loft while the city glittered outside and accordion music drifted up from somewhere below.

Later, as Priya stepped out into the cold December night, her breath made soft clouds in the air. The street glimmered with rain and reflected Christmas lights. A couple hurried past sharing an umbrella, laughing. The smell of roasting chestnuts drifted from a corner stand. Somewhere, church bells chimed.

Priya didn’t have all the answers, but she had one honest conversation under her belt and the phone number of someone who understood what it felt like to be spectacularly uncertain in a beautiful city.

For tonight, that felt like enough.

The Make Friends and Maintain Friendships Masterplan

We often under-rate relocation as a life transition. I have had to relocate several times. I know what it takes to survive: friends you can depend on.

Making new friends after a relocation isn’t about replacing the people you left behind—it’s about building the infrastructure you need to survive and thrive in your new reality. Your best friend from your old location knows your history, your inside jokes, the person you were before everything changed, and that connection is irreplaceable—nurture it fiercely through regular calls, visits, and the kind of texts that pick up mid-conversation like no time has passed. They can’t, however, bring you soup when you’re sick at 2 AM, can’t meet you for an impromptu coffee when you’re spiralling, can’t introduce you to their dentist or help you figure out which grocery store has the best bread.

New friends become your on-the-ground support system—the people who help you build a life where you actually live, not just where you used to live. You need both: the deep roots of old friendship that remind you who you are, and the new connections that help you figure out who you’re becoming. One gives you continuity; the other gives you community.

Christmas events, community gatherings, or even online spaces are filled with opportunities to connect. Every friendship starts with a simple introduction. The barista you see every morning, the neighbour you exchange nods with, or someone in your extended social circle could become a meaningful connection if you’re open to the possibility.

New friendships are a reminder that life always offers fresh beginnings, even during times of change. You don’t have to navigate transitions alone—there are people out there ready to walk alongside you. Making friends and maintaining friendships is one of the subjects we’ll address during my 3-6 month mentoring program, the Radical Renaissance Protocol.

Today, say yes to one social event that feels uncomfortable or outside your comfort zone—especially if you’re new somewhere or going through a transition.
Show up even when you’d rather stay home. Go to the networking thing, the expat meetup, the random invitation from an acquaintance. Join local and regional Facebook groups.
Worst case scenario: You waste a couple of hours.
Best case scenario: You meet someone else who also feels out of place, you bond over your mutual discomfort and inability to remember how many bises are appropriate, and six months later they’re the person you text when you need someone to sit with you in your uncertainty—the friend who gets it because they were there too, pretending to have their life together while everything felt impossibly hard and terrifyingly uncertain all at once.

It’s not easy to make friends, especially in a country where you may not speak the language, but it is essential. As Helen Keller said, “I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light.” Would you like to figure out what type of friend YOU are and maybe adjust your approach to fit your new circumstances? Are you and a new friend really are compatible? To help my clients make friends, have created a set of light-hearted quizzes, quotes and questions to help you do just that. Just fill in the form below and you’ll get immediate access to them all. I’ll also add you to my newsletter list, though you can unsubscribe from this list effortlessly and at any time.

Included:

– How well do you know your Friends? Quiz

– What is Your Friendship Style? and Are your Friendship Styles compatible? Quiz

– 20 of the Most Inspiring Friends and Friendship Quotes and

– 20 lighthearted Questions you can ask to get to know a new Friend

Last Year’s Christmas Countdown Calendar post

Designed for those navigating a life transition, the Radical Renaissance Protocol guides you through an identity reset, helping you reconnect with your purpose, realign your values, and reclaim the clarity you thought you’d lost. This isn’t about fixing what’s broken: through reflection, strategic reinvention, and soul-anchored mentoring, you’ll transform uncertainty into direction and dormant potential into meaningful impact.

If your soul is craving fresh air, meaningful movement, and a chance to reconnect with nature, join us on a Camino de Santiago Crossroads Retreat in the southwest of France. This isn’t just a scenic hike – it’s a powerful, natural reboot for your body, mind, and spirit. Imagine quiet paths, rolling hills, cozy evenings, and slow conversations. No fitness requirements. No forced bonding. No pressure to have a breakthrough. Just one foot in front of the other, and a journey that meets you exactly where you are.

I put the essence of who I am, and everything I have experienced that makes me who I am, with great enthusiasm, into my retreats, courses and books. – Dr Margaretha Montagu (MBChB, MRCGP, NLP master pract (cert,) Transformational Life Coach (dip,) Life Story Coach (cert) Counselling (cert,) Med Hypnotherapy (dip) and EAGALA (cert)

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Countdown to Christmas 2025 Day 3

christmas carols

December 3, 2025 – 22 Days to Christmas

Today’s Story: Elsie’s “Mistake.”

Château de la Garde had rough-hewn limestone walls that rose from the damp earth like a sleeping giant. Elsie pulled her wool scarf higher, the fabric scratching her chin. Her instincts, which usually guided her safely to the nearest quiet corner with a book and a cup of tea, had screamed No, stay at home! ‘Christmas Carols at the Chateau’ is not your thing! But her neighbour, Madame Dubois, insisted with such determined, festive goodwill that Elsie had capitulated.

She followed a small stream of people—mostly couples in expensive, sensible outerwear—across the courtyard. The air smelled of cold stone, damp leaves, and woodsmoke. Above the heavy oak door hung a single, enormous wreath decorated with pinecones the size of her fist.

The Great Hall was a cavern of soaring ceilings and shadows. Gilded frames held portraits of long-dead dukes who looked perpetually annoyed, now flanked by towering, twinkling fir trees. The cold air of the entrance gave way to a dense warmth, thick with the scent of beeswax candles and the cloying sweetness of vin chaud.

Elsie found a seat near the back, against a wall that felt genuinely medieval, radiating a bone-deep chill that no amount of central heating could temper. She was safe here, a lone island in a sea of rustling velvet and murmured French. She pulled out her phone, intending to check the weather, but the signal had clearly been sacrificed to preserve the chateau’s ancient atmosphere.

The choir filed in, a group of twenty-odd people in deep blue robes, their faces serious. The conductor, a man with a wild shock of white hair and a bow tie that seemed to vibrate with enthusiasm, raised his hands.

The first note of the carol—a low, powerful bass—hit the stone walls and rebounded, vibrating through the floor and up into Elsie’s chest. It wasn’t just music; it was a physical experience, a heavy blanket woven from sound.

It was during the third verse of a particularly complex French carol that Elsie felt a sharp, unexpected jab in her ribs.

“I’m ever so sorry,” a voice whispered, heavily accented, right next to her ear. “I think my elbow just committed a felony against your person.”

Elsie turned her head slowly. The woman next to her was small, with a riot of dark, curly hair that seemed to defy gravity and a pair of glasses perched precariously on her nose. She was holding a plastic cup of mulled wine with the intensity of someone guarding a national treasure.

“It’s fine,” Elsie whispered back, rubbing her side. “I think the chateau’s acoustics must have amplified the impact.”

The woman grinned, a quick, bright flash. “Ah, yes. The medieval echo chamber. Designed to make you feel spiritually uplifted. I’m Clara.”

“Elsie.”

“I’m here under duress,” Clara confided, leaning in slightly. “My husband is in the tenor section. He sings with the passion of a man who believes he is personally responsible for the salvation of the entire audience. It’s exhausting to watch.”

Elsie let out a small, involuntary puff of laughter. “Mine was a neighbour. Madame Dubois. She operates on a level of festive coercion I’ve never before encountered.”

“Ah, French women of a certain age. Forces of nature.” Clara took a careful sip of her wine. “Do you think this vin chaud is actually just port with a cinnamon stick? Because it’s suspiciously strong.”

“I suspect it’s a secret regional recipe,” Elsie replied, feeling a lightness she hadn’t anticipated. She hadn’t spoken more than three sentences to a stranger in a week, and here she was, dissecting the alcohol content of the local Christmas tipple.

The choir launched into a rousing, slightly off-key rendition of “Deck the Halls.”

“Fa la la la la,” Clara mouthed, rolling her eyes with theatrical flair. “I love the carols, I really do, but I swear my other half just went rogue on the ‘la’s.”

“He’s expressing his artistic freedom,” Elsie murmured, watching the husband in question, whose face was indeed a mask of intense, slightly pained devotion.

During the brief intermission, the crowd surged towards the refreshments table. Elsie and Clara, having established a comfortable proximity, moved together.

“So, you’re not from around here,” Clara stated, not as a question, but as a shared observation.

“Is it the way I flinch when someone speaks French too quickly?” Elsie asked, accepting a tiny, star-shaped mince pie.

“No, it’s the coat,” Clara said, tapping Elsie’s sleeve. “It’s too practical. Too sensible. Everyone here wears something that looks like it was woven from a rare alpaca and a thousand euros. In rebellion, I’m wearing a coat I bought in a panic at a motorway service station.”

They fell into an easy, meandering conversation that drifted far from the chateau and the carols. Clara was a graphic designer who had followed her historian husband to this corner of the world and was now trying to launch a business selling online journals to people who still used paper diaries. Elsie confessed her current state of professional drift—a quiet, post-burnout sabbatical she hadn’t yet told anyone about.

The conductor, now back on the stage, clapped his hands sharply, signaling the end of the intermission.

“We should probably go back,” Elsie said, feeling a pang of genuine disappointment.

“Wait,” Clara whispered. She reached into her small, impractical handbag and pulled out a slightly crumpled business card.

Elsie took the card as they returned to their seats. The choir began a slow, soaring piece, the voices weaving together like threads of silver and gold. This time, Elsie didn’t lean against the cold wall. She sat upright, her attention split between the music and the small, warm presence beside her.

The music was beautiful, undeniably so, but it was the quiet, shared moment after the final note—the collective sigh of the audience, the scrape of chairs, the sudden rush of cold air as the doors opened—that felt most significant.

Outside, the frost had thickened, turning the courtyard into a sheet of silver. Clara’s husband appeared, scarf wound haphazardly around his neck, still flushed with post-performance adrenaline.

“Ah, ma chérie, you survived!” he said, kissing Clara on both cheeks. “Did you hear the exquisite harmonies in ‘the second piece’Noel Nouvelet? Magnifique, non?”

“Magnificent,” Clara agreed, with such sincere affection that Elsie felt a small pang of something she couldn’t quite name. Clara turned to introduce them, but her husband was already being pulled away by another choir member, deep into a passionate debate about tempo of “Minuit Chétiens.”

“He’ll be another twenty minutes at least,” Clara said, pulling her ridiculous, fluffy hat down over her ears. “I’m going to need a proper coffee after this. A coffee that tastes like actual coffee, not a medieval spice rack.”

“I know a place,” Elsie heard herself say. “It’s tiny, but the coffee is excellent.”

Clara stopped, turning to face her. The chateau lights cast long shadows across the courtyard, but her expression was clear. “When?”

The directness of it caught Elsie off guard. Not maybe or we should, but when.

“Tomorrow?” The word came out tentative, as if testing whether it was real.

“Tomorrow,” Clara confirmed. “Text me the address. I’ll be the one who looks desperately grateful to be somewhere that isn’t a medieval monument to seasonal obligation.”

They stood there for a moment longer, breath clouding in the frozen air, as the last of the crowd dispersed around them. The chateau loomed behind them, its windows golden, the wreath above the door catching the light. Somewhere, a door closed with a heavy, final thud.

“I should let you find your husband,” Elsie said.

“He’ll find me eventually. He always does.” Clara smiled, then reached out and squeezed Elsie’s arm. “Thank you for making this bearable. Better than bearable, actually.”

Elsie walked to her car alone, her footsteps crunching on the gravel. She unlocked the door and sat for a moment in the cold interior, looking at the business card in her hand.

As she pulled out of the car park, she caught sight of Clara (aka Penny) in her rearview mirror, standing in a pool of light, waving with both hands above her head like someone signalling a rescue plane.

Elsie lifted one hand from the steering wheel and waved back.

The road home was dark and winding, but she knew the way. And tomorrow, she would know the way to somewhere else entirely—a small café, a proper cup of coffee, and a conversation that doesn’t have to end when the carols did.

Maybe Madame Dubois had been right after all.

The Make Friends and Maintain Friendships Masterplan

The invitations you’re most tempted to decline are often the ones you need most. Not because every event will be amazing (some will be terrible), but because isolating during life transitions feels safe until it becomes suffocating.

You don’t have to say yes to everything. You don’t have to become a social butterfly. You just have to say yes to one thing you’d normally decline.

Maybe it’ll be awkward. Maybe you’ll leave early. Maybe you’ll spend the whole time thinking about your couch.

Or maybe—just maybe—you’ll meet your person. The one who also wanted to leave early. The one who also felt awkward. The one who becomes your Tuesday dinner friend, your emergency contact, your “I need to complain about life” text thread.

You won’t know until you say yes.

Today, say yes to one Christmas invitation you’d normally decline.
The community Christmas carols sing-along, even though you don’t know the words past the first verse. The tree lighting ceremony in the town square when it’s definitely going to rain. That annual Christmas concert your overly enthusiastic neighbour won’t stop mentioning.
What you’re risking: Frozen fingers and frozen toes. Making small talk with strangers about fruitcake. Pretending to enjoy mulled wine that tastes like liquid potpourri. One slightly embarrassing evening you would have forgotten all about by January.
What you might gain: A moment when someone’s elbow digs into your ribs, and they apologise with the kind of quirky humour that makes you forget you actually want to be anywhere else. A conversation that starts with “I’m only here under duress” and ends with a business card in your pocket. The discovery that the person sitting next to you also thinks this is ridiculous, and suddenly, ridiculous not only becomes bearable, but the highlight of your season.

Would you like to find out what type of friend YOU are? How well do you know your friends? If you and a new friend are really compatible? I have created a set of light-hearted quizzes, quotes and questions to help you do just that. Just fill in the form below and you’ll get immediate access to them all. I’ll also add you to my newsletter list, though you can unsubscribe from this list effortlessly and at any time.

Included:

– How well do you know your Friends? Quiz

– What is your Friendship Style? and Are your Friendship Styles compatible? Quiz

– 20 of the Most Inspiring Friends and Friendship Quotes and

– 20 lighthearted Questions you can ask to get to know a new Friend

Last Year’s Christmas Countdown Calendar post

Author Bio: Dr Margaretha Montagu – described as a “game changer”, “gifted healer”, “guiding light” and “life-enriching author” – is an experienced medical doctor, a certified NLP practitioner, a medical hypnotherapist, an equine-assisted psychotherapist (EAGALAcertified) and a transformational retreat leader who guides her clients through life transitions – virtually, or with the assistance of her Friesian and Falabella horses, at their home in the southwest of France.

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Countdown to Christmas Calendar 2025 Day 4

christmas calendar

December 4, 2025 – 21 Days to Christmas

Today’s Story: Marie’s Wig Collection

For Harriet

The text arrives at 6:47 AM on December 10th: Chemo brain strikes again. Forgot to buy eggs. Also forgot what eggs are for. Send help.

By 7:15, there are four dozen eggs in Marie’s kitchen. Also: three different types of bread, two quiches (one still warm), a rotisserie chicken, and Lisa standing at the stove making scrambled eggs.

“You didn’t have to come,” Marie says from the doorway, her own head wrapped in the soft green scarf that Jen brought last week because it “matched her eyes and also her face when she’s nauseous.”

“I was already up,” Lisa lies. She wasn’t. Her hair is in a messy bun and she’s wearing inside-out leggings. “Besides, someone has to make sure you eat some real food.”

Marie shuffles to the table. Her slippers make a soft shushing sound against the hardwood. Everything feels both sharper these days—colours too bright, sounds too loud, but her own body somewhere far away, like she’s operating it by remote control.

Lisa slides eggs onto a plate. They’re perfect—soft, buttery, the way Marie’s mom used to make them. Marie’s throat tightens.

“Don’t you dare cry over eggs,” Lisa warns. “I have a reputation to maintain as someone who can’t cook.”

“These are really good.”

“I Googled it in your driveway. ‘Scrambled eggs for your friend who’s going through hell.'” Lisa sits down across from her.

Marie takes a bite. Her stomach, which has spent three days staging a revolution, cautiously accepts the offering.

“The group chat is losing it, by the way,” Lisa says, pulling out her phone. “Jen wants to know if we’re doing Christmas at your place or hers. Rachel sent seventeen ideas for ‘chemo-friendly holiday crafts,’ which is apparently a category that exists. And Sarah—” She pauses, scrolling. “Sarah wants to know if you’d rather talk about it or never mention it and just aggressively focus on normal things.”

“What did you tell them?”

“That you’d let us know when you knew.” Lisa looks up. “Will you? Let us know?”

Marie pushes eggs around her plate. Outside, someone’s car alarm is going off. The morning light coming through the window is thin and pale, the kind of winter light that makes everything look temporary.

“I don’t know what I need,” she admits. “Some days I want everyone here. Other days I want to crawl into a corner.”

“Okay. So we’ll figure it out as we go.” Lisa says it like it’s simple. Like Marie isn’t a burden with a rotating schedule of bad days and worse days. Like showing up at 7 AM to make scrambled eggs is just what you do.

By December 15th, there’s a system.

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: Lisa brings breakfast and sits with Marie during the morning nausea. They don’t talk much. Sometimes Lisa reads the news out loud. Sometimes they just sit.

Tuesday and Thursday: Jen comes after work with dinner and terrible reality TV. They watch home renovation shows and make fun of people’s design choices. Jen does a running commentary in different accents. Marie laughs until her ribs hurt, and it’s the first time hurting has felt good in weeks.

Saturday: Rachel arrives with craft supplies and chaos. Last week, they made ornaments out of salt dough. This week, she’s brought supplies for decorating gingerbread houses, except she forgot the gingerbread, and they end up building houses out of TUC crackers and icing. Marie’s collapses. Rachel declares it “architecturally honest.”

Sunday: Sarah takes Marie to appointments. Holds her hand as the needle goes in. Doesn’t flinch at the blood draws. Asks the doctors questions Marie’s too tired to ask. Takes notes in a little spiral notebook with a ginger cat on the front.

It’s not perfect. Some days, Marie cancels everythin,g and they let her be. Some days, someone says the wrong thing and Marie cries in the bathroom. Some days, the group chat goes quiet because nobody knows what to say.

But they keep showing up.

On December 23rd, Marie wakes up, and her pillow is covered in hair—the last of it finally letting go. She knew it was coming. The oncologist warned her. But knowing and seeing are different countries.

She texts the group chat: Houston, we have a situation.

Twenty minutes later, all four of them are in her bathroom. Rachel brought clippers. Jen brought champagne (sparkling cider for Marie). Lisa brought the wig collection—all five of them, lined up on the counter like a strange police lineup.

“We could do a ceremonial shaving,” Rachel suggests. “Very Britney Spears 2007.”

“Or we could just buzz it quick and move on,” Sarah offers, ever practical.

Marie looks at herself in the mirror. At her friends crowded into her tiny bathroom, still in their coats because they came so fast. At the wigs—blond, auburn, black, silver, and one truly unfortunate pink one they bought as a joke, but Marie secretly loves.

“Ceremonial,” she decides. “But skip the breakdown. I’m too tired for a full Britney moment.”

Lisa plugs in the clippers. The buzz fills the small space—mechanical, final, and somehow less scary than Marie imagined.

Rachel goes first, shaving one strip down the middle. “Mohawk phase!” she announces. Jen takes the next section. Then Sarah. Then Lisa. They’re laughing, and Marie’s crying, but it’s not sad crying. It’s something else—something that feels like a mix of surrender and relief.

When it’s done, Marie runs her hand over her bare scalp. It’s smooth. Strange. Hers.

“You look badass,” Jen says.

“You look like you could join a punk band,” Rachel adds.

“You look like you,” Sarah says quietly, and somehow that’s the one that lands.

Lisa picks up the pink wig and places it on Marie’s head with the solemnity of a coronation. “Your Majesty.”

They take seventeen selfies. Marie looks exhausted, ridiculous, surrounded by her support team. She posts one to Instagram with the caption: “Like my new hair”? The comments flood in within minutes.

That night, they eat Chinese takeout in Marie’s living room. Her tiny Christmas tree—decorated entirely with the salt dough ornaments they made—twinkles in the corner. Someone’s fortune cookie says “Better things are coming.” Marie doesn’t believe in fortune cookies, but she keeps the slip of paper anyway.

“Next year,” Jen says, sprawled on the floor, “we’re doing Christmas somewhere warm. Beach. Mimosas. No cancer.”

“Legally binding,” Rachel agrees.

Marie pulls the pink wig down lower. It’s itchy but perfect. Her friends are arguing now about whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie. The same argument they’ve had every December for six years.

Everything is different. Everything is the same.

She’s going to be okay. Not because the treatment is working—though it is. Not because she’s so brave—but because she has friends she can trust.

The Make Friends and Maintain Friendships Masterplan

In a season often marked by busy schedules and loud celebrations, there’s something beautifully grounding about quiet moments shared with friends. Sometimes, the best connections don’t need words.

Friends aren’t just the people we laugh with during the good times—they’re the ones who show up with scrambled eggs at dawn when we’ve forgotten what eggs are for, who sit in silence when words fail, who hold our hands through the unbearable and somehow make it bearable. During life’s hardest transitions—illness, loss, divorce, upheaval—friends become our infrastructure, the scaffolding that holds us upright when we can’t stand on our own. Those friendships don’t suddenly materialise in crisis; they’re built in the ordinary moments that come before, in the small, consistent acts of showing up, checking in, and staying connected even when life gets busy.

Nurturing friendships isn’t just about enriching our lives—it’s about building a network of love sturdy enough to catch us when we fall, and being strong enough to catch others when they do. We invest in friendships not because we expect catastrophe, but because we’re human, and being human means we’ll all face hard seasons eventually. When we do, we’ll need someone who knows us well enough to bring the right wig, ask the right questions, or simply sit beside us and say nothing at all. The friends we cultivate today become the lifeline we’ll need tomorrow, and the lifeline we can offer when someone else’s world falls apart.

Today, show up consistently for someone going through a hard time—not just once, but again and again, even when it’s inconvenient. Worst case scenario: Your schedule gets complicated and you have to wake up early sometimes. Best case scenario: You become the person someone thinks of when they remember who helped them survive the hardest season of their life, and you learn that love isn’t just the big gestures—it’s scrambled eggs at 7 AM and sitting quietly through the bad days and showing up with clippers when life falls apart.

As my mission in life is to help people through difficult times, this Christmas Countdown Calendar is about making friends and maintaining friendships, because we all need our friends in times of trouble. I have created a set of light-hearted quizzes, quotes and questions to help you “Be the friend you’d like to have.” Would you like to find out what type of friend you are? How well do you know your friends? If you and a new friend are really compatible? Just fill in the form below, and you’ll get immediate access. I’ll also add you to my newsletter list, though you can unsubscribe from this list effortlessly and at any time. Included:

  • How well do you know your Friends? Quiz
  • What is Your Friendship Style? and Are your Friendship Styles compatible? Quiz
  • 20 of the Most Inspiring Friends and Friendship Quotes and
  • 20 lighthearted Questions you can ask to get to know a new Friend

Last Year’s Christmas Countdown Calendar post

Designed for those navigating a life transition, the Radical Renaissance Protocol guides you through an identity reset, helping you reconnect with your purpose, realign your values, and reclaim the clarity you thought you’d lost. This isn’t about fixing what’s broken: through reflection, strategic reinvention, and soul-anchored mentoring, you’ll transform uncertainty into direction and dormant potential into meaningful impact.

If your soul is craving fresh air, meaningful movement, and a chance to reconnect with nature, join us on a Camino de Santiago Crossroads Retreat in the southwest of France. This isn’t just a scenic hike – it’s a powerful, natural reboot for your body, mind, and spirit. Imagine quiet paths, rolling hills, cozy evenings, and slow conversations. No fitness requirements. No forced bonding. No pressure to have a breakthrough. Just one foot in front of the other, and a journey that meets you exactly where you are.

I put the essence of who I am, and everything I have experienced that makes me who I am, with great enthusiasm, into my retreats, courses and books. – Dr Margaretha Montagu (MBChB, MRCGP, NLP master pract (cert,) Transformational Life Coach (dip,) Life Story Coach (cert) Counselling (cert,) Med Hypnotherapy (dip) and EAGALA (cert)

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Christmas Countdown Calendar – 2 days to Christmas!

Theme: Making Friends and Maintaining Friendships

Friendship as a Shelter

In the storms of life, friendships are the shelters that keep us safe and grounded. A good friend doesn’t need to solve your problems; they simply offer a space where you feel seen, heard, and valued.

Think about the friends who’ve been your shelter in tough times. How did their support help you weather the storm? And how can you be that shelter for someone else? Friendship is a mutual exchange of strength and solace, especially during the holidays.

Cherish the friends who stand by you, and remember that your presence can be a refuge for them as well.

Journaling Prompt: Who has been your shelter during challenging times? How can you express gratitude for their support?

Action Step: Reach out to a friend today and let them know how their support has been a source of strength for you.

Interactive Comment: Grateful for your friendships? Comment with “You’re my shelter!”

Would you like to find out what type of friend YOU are? How well do you know your friends? If you and a new friend really are compatible? I have created a set of light-hearted quizzes, quotes and questions to help you do just that.

Included:
– How well do you know your Friends? Quiz
– What is Your Friendship Style? and Are your Friendship Styles compatible? Quiz
– 20 of the Most Inspiring Friends and Friendship Quotes and
– 20 lighthearted Questions you can ask to get to know a new Friend

Discover how to build meaningful, lasting friendships and create a support system that truly has your back—delivered straight to your inbox!

Author Bio: Dr Margaretha Montagu – described as a “game changer”, “gifted healer”, “guiding light” and “life-enriching author” – is an experienced medical doctor, a certified NLP practitioner, a medical hypnotherapist, an equine-assisted psychotherapist (EAGALAcertified) and a transformational retreat leader who guides her clients through life transitions – virtually, or with the assistance of her Friesian and Falabella horses, at their home in the southwest of France.

It’s time to kick exhaustion to the curb and finally ditch that terminally overwhelmed feeling, evict your inner critic, declutter your mind and take control of your life like a boss. You’re about to turn your life from a comedy of errors into a blockbuster success story (with a much better soundtrack). This two-day online course is designed for anyone facing a major life transition, needing to dramatically reduce stress, end exhaustion and overwhelm, and prevent or recover from burnout.

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Christmas Calendar Countdown – 3 days to Christmas!

Theme: Making Friends and Maintaining Friendships

Letting Go of Perfect

Perfection is a myth, especially when it comes to relationships. Friendships thrive not on flawless interactions but on genuine ones. The holiday season can amplify the pressure to be “perfect,” but true friends don’t expect perfection—they value authenticity.

Release the need to say the perfect thing, give the perfect gift, or plan the perfect outing. Instead, focus on being present and sincere. A heartfelt message or a simple gesture often means more than anything extravagant.

When you let go of perfection, you allow room for real, meaningful connection. And in doing so, you give yourself—and your friends—the gift of grace.

Journaling Prompt: How does striving for perfection impact your friendships? What would it feel like to let go of that pressure?

Action Step: Do something imperfectly today—send a messy but heartfelt message, give a gift that’s simple but meaningful, or just show up as you are.

Interactive Comment: Ready to embrace imperfection? Comment with “Perfectly imperfect!”

Would you like to find out what type of friend YOU are? How well do you know your friends? If you and a new friend really are compatible? I have created a set of light-hearted quizzes, quotes and questions to help you do just that.

Included:

  • How well do you know your Friends? Quiz
  • What is Your Friendship Style? and Are your Friendship Styles compatible? Quiz
  • 20 of the Most Inspiring Friends and Friendship Quotes and
  • 20 lighthearted Questions you can ask to get to know a new Friend

Discover how to build meaningful, lasting friendships and create a support system that truly has your back—delivered straight to your inbox!

Author Bio: Dr Margaretha Montagu – described as a “game changer”, “gifted healer”, “guiding light” and “life-enriching author” – is an experienced medical doctor, a certified NLP practitioner, a medical hypnotherapist, an equine-assisted psychotherapist (EAGALAcertified) and a transformational retreat leader who guides her clients through life transitions – virtually, or with the assistance of her Friesian and Falabella horses, at their home in the southwest of France.

It’s time to kick exhaustion to the curb and finally ditch that terminally overwhelmed feeling, evict your inner critic, declutter your mind and take control of your life like a boss. You’re about to turn your life from a comedy of errors into a blockbuster success story (with a much better soundtrack). This two-day online course is designed for anyone facing a major life transition, needing to dramatically reduce stress, end exhaustion and overwhelm, and prevent or recover from burnout.

Posted on

Christmas Calendar Countdown – 4 days to Christmas!

Theme: Making Friends and Maintaining Friendships

The Gift of Vulnerability

Friendships deepen when we allow ourselves to be seen for who we truly are—flaws, fears, and all. Vulnerability isn’t about oversharing; it’s about trusting someone enough to show them your authentic self.

This can feel daunting, especially during a life transition when emotions are heightened. But letting a friend in can be one of the most healing steps you take. When you share your struggles, you create space for understanding, connection, and support.

This holiday season, consider opening up to a friend about how you’re really feeling. You may find that your vulnerability invites them to share their own, strengthening your bond in the process.

Journaling Prompt: What’s one thing you’ve been hesitant to share with a friend? How might opening up bring you closer?

Action Step: Have an honest conversation with a friend today. Start small—share something you’ve been feeling or thinking about.

Interactive Comment: Ready to embrace vulnerability? Comment with “I’m opening up!”

Would you like to find out what type of friend YOU are? How well do you know your friends? If you and a new friend really are compatible? I have created a set of light-hearted quizzes, quotes and questions to help you do just that.

Included:

– How well do you know your Friends? Quiz

– What is Your Friendship Style? and Are your Friendship Styles compatible? Quiz

– 20 of the Most Inspiring Friends and Friendship Quotes and

– 20 lighthearted Questions you can ask to get to know a new Friend

Discover how to build meaningful, lasting friendships and create a support system that truly has your back—delivered straight to your inbox!

Hit the pause button and regain your footing during a From Troubled to Triumphant Retreat. Imagine walking a peaceful stretch of the Camino de Santiago, where every step helps untangle the mental clutter or spending time with gentle Friesian horses who teach you the art of mindfulness. Whether you choose to make a change or are forced to, this retreat offers the perfect blend of peace, perspective, and playful exploration to help you rise from troubled to triumphant!

I put the essence of who I am, and everything I have experienced that makes me who I am, with great enthusiasm, into my retreats, courses and books. – Dr Margaretha Montagu (MBChB, MRCGP, NLP master pract (cert,) Transformational Life Coach (dip,) Life Story Coach (cert) Counselling (cert,) Med Hypnotherapy (dip) and EAGALA (cert)

#christmascountdown #friends #friendsforever #friendsforlife #friendship #friendshipquotes

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Christmas Calendar Countdown – 5 days to Christmas!

Theme: Making Friends and Maintaining Friendships

The Power of Playfulness

Life transitions can feel heavy, but friendships remind us that it’s okay to set the weight down, even for a little while. Playfulness isn’t just for children—it’s a powerful way to reconnect with joy and strengthen bonds.

Think about the friends who bring out your silly side—the ones who make you dance in the kitchen, play board games until midnight, or laugh so hard you cry. These moments of play are more than fun; they’re healing. They remind you that even in difficult times, life still holds room for lightness.

This holiday season, let yourself embrace playfulness. It’s a gift not only to your friends but also to yourself.

Journaling Prompt: When was the last time you laughed or played with a friend? How did it make you feel, and how can you create more moments like that?

Action Step: Plan a playful activity with a friend today, even if it’s as simple as swapping funny memes or trying a new game.

Interactive Comment: Ready to let joy in? Comment with “Play is my power!”

Would you like to find out what type of friend YOU are? How well do you know your friends? If you and a new friend really are compatible? I have created a set of light-hearted quizzes, quotes and questions to help you do just that.

Included:

– How well do you know your Friends? Quiz

– What is Your Friendship Style? and Are your Friendship Styles compatible? Quiz

– 20 of the Most Inspiring Friends and Friendship Quotes and

– 20 lighthearted Questions you can ask to get to know a new Friend

Discover how to build meaningful, lasting friendships and create a support system that truly has your back—delivered straight to your inbox!

It’s time to kick exhaustion to the curb and finally ditch that terminally overwhelmed feeling, evict your inner critic, declutter your mind and take control of your life like a boss. You’re about to turn your life from a comedy of errors into a blockbuster success story (with a much better soundtrack). This two-day online course is designed for anyone facing a major life transition, needing to dramatically reduce stress, end exhaustion and overwhelm, and prevent or recover from burnout.

Author Bio: Dr Margaretha Montagu – described as a “game changer”, “gifted healer”, “guiding light” and “life-enriching author” – is an experienced medical doctor, a certified NLP practitioner, a medical hypnotherapist, an equine-assisted psychotherapist (EAGALAcertified) and a transformational retreat leader who guides her clients through life transitions – virtually, or with the assistance of her Friesian and Falabella horses, at their home in the southwest of France.

Posted on

Christmas Calendar Countdown – 6 days to Christmas!

Theme: Making Friends and Maintaining Friendships

Friends as Mirrors

True friends reflect the best parts of us, even when we can’t see them ourselves. They remind us of our strengths, our potential, and our ability to overcome life’s challenges. In times of transition, this reflection can be a lifeline, helping us rediscover who we are.

Take a moment to think about a friend who sees your light even when you feel surrounded by darkness. What qualities do they notice in you that you sometimes forget? Their belief in you is a gift, one that can inspire you to step into your own power.

Friendships aren’t just about comfort—they’re about growth. When you let friends reflect your strengths back to you, you gain the courage to keep moving forward.

Journaling Prompt: What’s one positive quality a friend has pointed out in you? How can you nurture that quality in yourself?

Action Step: Thank a friend for the way they see and support you. Let them know how their encouragement has made a difference.

Interactive Comment: Ready to see yourself through a friend’s eyes? Comment with “I see my light!”

Would you like to find out what type of friend YOU are? How well do you know your friends? If you and a new friend really are compatible? I have created a set of light-hearted quizzes, quotes and questions to help you do just that.

Included:

– How well do you know your Friends? Quiz

– What is Your Friendship Style? and Are your Friendship Styles compatible? Quiz

– 20 of the Most Inspiring Friends and Friendship Quotes and

– 20 lighthearted Questions you can ask to get to know a new Friend

Discover how to build meaningful, lasting friendships and create a support system that truly has your back—delivered straight to your inbox!

Hit the pause button and regain your footing during a From Troubled to Triumphant Retreat. Imagine walking a peaceful stretch of the Camino de Santiago, where every step helps untangle the mental clutter or spending time with gentle Friesian horses who teach you the art of mindfulness. Whether you choose to make a change or are forced to, this retreat offers the perfect blend of peace, perspective, and playful exploration to help you rise from troubled to triumphant!

Posted on

Christmas Calendar Countdown – 7 days to Christmas!

Theme: Making Friends and Maintaining Friendships

Celebrating Small Wins in Friendship

In times of transition, it’s easy to overlook the small, beautiful moments that make life meaningful—especially in friendships. These small wins could be as simple as an honest conversation, a laugh shared over coffee, or a moment of understanding that reminds you why this person is in your life.

Friendships don’t need grand milestones to thrive. They flourish in the quiet, consistent acts of care and attention that you both invest in each other. Celebrate the friend who checks in on you, the one who makes you smile when things feel heavy, or the friend who simply sits with you in silence.

This holiday season, honour these small but powerful wins. They are the threads that weave strong, lasting bonds. Even acknowledging these moments can deepen your gratitude for the people in your life.

Journaling Prompt: What’s a small but meaningful moment you’ve shared with a friend recently? How did it make you feel?

Action Step: Share a small win with a friend today. Let them know how much that moment meant to you.

Interactive Comment: Appreciate the little moments? Comment with “Small wins, big heart!”

Would you like to find out what type of friend YOU are? How well do you know your friends? If you and a new friend really are compatible? I have created a set of light-hearted quizzes, quotes and questions to help you do just that.

Included:

– How well do you know your Friends? Quiz

– What is Your Friendship Style? and Are your Friendship Styles compatible? Quiz

– 20 of the Most Inspiring Friends and Friendship Quotes and

– 20 lighthearted Questions you can ask to get to know a new Friend

Discover how to build meaningful, lasting friendships and create a support system that truly has your back—delivered straight to your inbox!


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