By Community Correspondent Jack Claydon

Every year the long, drawn out build up to Christmas day is different. Some years the excitement radiates from everyone’s faces and there is laughter in the air, however other years the preparation for Christmas seems a boring, laborious task that feels like a necessity rather than a joy. I am pleased to report that this year it seems to be a joyous affair.

Last year was, for me and many others, the worst Christmas ever. The credit crunch was biting hard. People were being made redundant, companies were not putting out special Christmas gifts or decorations in order to save money and the thought on many people’s minds were “let’s just get through this year”. Children woke up to disappointing gifts, the turkey for the Christmas dinner was from Lidl instead of Marks and Spencer’s and the crackers contained plastic jumping frogs instead of luxurious wooden-pieced puzzles. These are all little things but they dampened the mood considerably.

However, times have changed. The credit crunch is still affecting many people but for one reason or another the mood seems brighter and the prospect of Christmas is bringing back the childish excitement that remains in all of us. Christmas lights are up early and I already have cards on my mantelpiece. We are seeing a marked improvement as well in terms of companies offering special discounts for Christmas such as games bundles and Christmas dinner meal offers. These things have all excited our senses and although the word makes no sense, we are all feeling ‘Christmassy’.

Moreover the spirit of Christmas returning to our revitalised country could spark a nationwide credit crunch annihilation, with people spending money buying gifts and many other items in the run up to Christmas. This is what the government has been telling us to do and now, it seems, is the chance to finally do it. Spending money in smaller specialist shops will help stop them going under and in the long run, help save Britain’s economy. So this Christmas is not just about the rebirth of the ‘Crimble’ spirit but also about saving our country from the threat of economic disaster.

So this Christmas looks like it will turn out ok after all despite the lacklustre affair of last year. We are all in the mood for a fun, joyous Christmas even though we realise that it will cost money. However we can rest assured that our money will go to help saving our country and rebuilding our economy of old. So people of Britain, don’t buy budget turkeys from Lidl, go wild and expend on a succulent, tender one from Marks and Spencer’s, and remember this, this is not just Christmas, this is a honey roasted, luxury cracker, expensive gift Christmas.