It's a Wonderful Life

"Strange, isn't it? Each man's life touches so many other lives. When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?"

This is officially the best Christmas film ever made. Made in 1946, it tells the story of a guy called George Bailey, played by the ever-dashing James Stewart, who reluctantly spends his life in the little town of Bedford Falls in New England and contemplates suicide on Christmas Eve before being distracted by his guardian angel, Clarence. George tells Clarence that it would have been better if he’d never been born, and of course Clarence decides to show George exactly what the world would have been like had he never existed.

The film touches on many Christmassy themes, but what resounds most with me is the idea that a man who never achieves his goals or gets what he wants can still have a wonderful life. George spends his whole life making sacrifices because his conscience tells him to: he never goes to college, he never travels, and he does a job he hates because no one else will do it. In every instance he kicks himself for giving in and letting himself get dragged down, but he’s so generous and kind that he sees everything through and makes an awful lot of other people’s lives much happier as a result of it. And what this means is that when George regrets ever having lived at all, Clarence is able to convince him of how important he is in the grand scheme of things.

It’s an uplifting movie. It ends with a family reunited, a happy little angel and a rendition of Auld Lang Syne. It’s the sort of movie you watch with mulled wine and a box of tissues. Or, at least, I do, because I’m disgustingly sentimental about old Hollywood films. It’s the sort of film that tries to change your perspective of life, and says, “Look carefully; it isn’t all that bad.”

Nearly every Hollywood movie made these days has a common theme: achieve your dreams. It’s a Wonderful Life is the story of a man who never achieved his dreams, but was still a worthwhile human being and managed to change the world for the better. Now there’s a happy message if ever there was one.

"You see George, you've really had a wonderful life. Don't you see what a mistake it would be to just throw it away?"

Ten reasons why the last week of the autumn term is fabulous

It’s my favourite time of year. This week is set to be the best week of the school year. Here is why. They’re not in order because some things just can’t be put in order of preference.

1. Christmas lunch Every year I get the black forest gateau and every year it’s disgusting, but somehow Christmas lunch is still wonderful
2. Christmas assembly The head of music playing Jingle Bells in the style of Handel, year 7s in reindeer headdresses, the Twelve Days of Christmas NLCS-style . . .
3. Secret Santa More chocolate than you can possibly eat shoved into your pigeon hole. What’s not to love?
4. Less homework The teachers have basically given up by now, which is good, because so have we (a long time ago).
5. Shorter week Last day of school is Thursday. Major excitement.
6. Half day on Thursday And after school on Thursday I’m going to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park with friends, which is a delightful prospect.
7. Food in every lesson Tis the season for putting on weight, so we have biscuits, chocolate and cake in every class.
8. Christmas decorations Most classrooms are decorated at least semi-festively with a paper chain or too. We used to go all out with Christmas fairies with our faces on them.
9. Games in lessons In Latin we had a quiz on Ancient Rome (which my team just happened to win) and in Classics we played “What would Cicero do on a blind date?” Brilliant.
10. Auld Lang Syne Holding hands in the last assembly and singing really loudly. Nothing beats it.

This post definitely makes me look like a massive Christmas fanatic. I’m not. It’s just fun to get into at school. Honestly.

December

Being awake at midnight isn’t an irregular occurrence for me, but last night it was particularly special because I got to turn over my calendar onto the last month of the year, which excited me because the picture is of a bowl of jelly babies and I am a big child. December is my favourite month of the year by far, and 1st December always gets me very excited. I ran around school today telling everyone that it’s twenty two days until my birthday.

All the good stuff comes in December. We, of course, have the birthday of Noa, but we also have the birthday of Jesus, who is a somewhat more significant international figure. There’s also the end of term, really lovely cold frost on the windscreen of the car in the morning, New Years Eve, Channuka, and the way your breath twists up into the air in smoky curls. When you walk along the Southbank, there are grills of roast chestnuts that are so hot when you buy them you have to blow on each one for a good two minutes. We get Christmas television (It’s a Wonderful Life, Love Actually, A Christmas Carol, The Holiday, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas, not to mention the Doctor Who Christmas special). Plus my winter treat every year is a trip to the ballet with my grandma. This year we’re doing The Nutcracker by the English National Ballet, and I am ridiculously excited. Last year we saw Matthew Bourne’s Cinderella, and it was magnificent.

One of my favourite things about December is that it is the month of sparkles. Each year, on the roundabout at Highbury Corner, the trees are draped with strings of little white stars, and as I walk past they look like star dust has fallen on them. Up and down Oxford Street, great glittering decorations dangle from shop to shop, and every window display is filled with Fair Isle sweaters and candy canes and stockings and enormous sparkly trees. The Hamleys window display is always particularly spectacular at this time of year, as are Fortnum and Mason’s, Selfridges’, and Harrods’.

And to top it all off, December is the only month of the year in which I allow myself to listen to Christmas music, including that giant among Christmas songs known as Fairytale of New York, and possibly the most excellent moment of my day was when I sat down on the bus on my way to school and clicked on that title in my iPod. The music is just sublime and the Pogues are geniuses.

A famous December motto is “In December, keep yourself warm and sleep”. I totally disagree with this. I think that in December we should all keep warm and go outside and soak up the cold air. Go for a long walk on the Heath and be healthy and bright. The ponds freeze over, the sky is white, and the robin redbreasts are out. Wear thick woolly gloves and walking boots, and go to Kenwood House afterwards for hot chocolate. Feel the winter spirit. It’s the best time of the year.

Happy December!



Some extra stuff . . .

Today my lovely friend Saachi Sen released a song, Heal, because she is splendid. Click on her name to buy it on Amazon.

Plus, the marvellous Alex Day wants a Christmas no. 1. Click on his name to hear his song Forever Yours.