December. It is not only the last month of the calendar year but also a time to bring in the Christmas cheer. December has always been about cold weather, lots of winter friendly food and holidays.

I specially love the many types of parathas we can have in winters. Aloo (potato), gobhi (cauliflower), mooli (radish), paalak (spinach), sattu the list is long and I love them all. And of course, gajar ka halwa. It has to be the highest point of winters. You can have as many cups of chai as you want to, because it beats the cold, doesn’t it?

December is when I leave everything else and watch all the Christmas-sy movies I can find and watch in 31 days. I find them fun, there is no emotional overload and things always work out for better in the end. These movies leave me a little bit happier so I always make it a point to watch a few of those.

December is also the month when I go through my journal and planner. I like to see what I did through the year, how far I was from the goals I had set for myself in January and how much did life test me. Life tends to hand me a lot of lemons on a regular basis. But at least this keeps my life interesting.

I usually never stick to my resolutions but I never give up on making new ones every year.  For last few years I make a resolution to lose at least 15 kg over the year but the trend is generally in the upward direction. Somehow I never manage to keep myself away from sweets; so instead of going minus 15, I have found myself in the plus 10 region every time.

I have also very recently found the joy of journaling using stickers and other decorative items. Writing a few lines I liked, decorating them with beautiful stickers is also a relaxing time for me. I think I’ll put this is my resolutions for 2026.

It is also the time when I take stock of the number of books I read through the year, look at my ever increasing TBR, plan some of what to read next year and then hope to buy more books; because for me buying books is almost as important as reading them.

There were many things I wished to accomplish this year but no worries, there is always next year. 365 more days to do something new, better myself and well, read more and more books. And also, I am going to learn to do some make up. Because seriously,  I am so close to 40 and I even forget to put on lipstick and kajal! No more wasting the cosmetics, I will use what I have purchased.