It is great that the biggest family holiday of the year can go ahead. Any credit belongs to the collective good sense of the public
Spending time with family matters enormously to human beings. There was a spectacular reminder of that truth this week. DNA from the bones and teeth of 35 people who were buried more than 5,700 years ago in a neolithic tomb in the Cotswolds showed that, fully 700 years before work began on Stonehenge, 27 of the 35 were biological relatives from five generations, including small children. The realities of neolithic life are mostly unimaginable to us today. In their care for family, on the other hand, these otherwise distant communities seem vividly relatable.
What was true in prehistory is also true now. This weekend will be its annual embodiment. For most people, the Christmas holiday is the pre-eminent family occasion of the year. Its religious significance has long been secondary to its social importance. For both good and ill, this is a family time. There will be many lonely and hungry people this weekend, and there is invariably a frightening spike in domestic violence. Yet, in spite of Covid curbs, the spread of Omicron and disruptions on road and rail, around half of Britain’s population still plans to visit relatives.
