meilleurs voeux!

In France, people have a tradition of sending holiday greetings to friends as cartes de voeux, or new year’s greetings, instead of Christmas cards. This is a great tradition for many reasons: it is secular and thus non-discriminatory and especially it is less time-sensitive. Although debates abound on this as on all aspects of French etiquette, from what I’ve heard, you have until Jan. 31 or even Feb. 15 to get them sent. This leaves lots more time to get them out than the three weeks of the frantic pre-Christmas dash to do everything and have a wonderful time while singing carols, baking cookies and other “magical” tasks (that all seem to land on women’s shoulders or psyches, if they fail to meet everybody’s expectations).

This “family fun activity” (haha) has been gathering dust in our house for months, and it is still no closer to being done than … well, than the COVID-19 virus is done wreaking havoc on our psyches.

So enough with the guilt: here’s your “carte de voeux” in all its unfinished glory. Here’s to survival…

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