Christmas Past 2009, 17

17. Christmas is supposed to be a happy time of year, when you exchange gifts and spend time with your family. However, what we forget is how some people have to face horrific times during Christmas.

Sometimes you are too young to be aware of what's really happening. The Christmas of 2006 would have been the worst-ever Christmas for me if I had been aware of what was happening to my father. He was in hospital, not aware yet that he had cancer. So he was suffering, and in pain. But even though you might not be aware of it at the time, it almost upsets you more when you are older. Just the thought of having not known can make you feel guilty.