In school canteens, we have run out of croquettes. We no longer have banana yogurts, and the macaroni is wholemeal. The day there is a vegetable starter and lentils as a main course, the students (and indeed all of us) suffer a brutal shock because culturally for us they are two starters and we miss a main course. The changes in the canteen menus have added a bit more drama, if that were possible, to school food, which has always been in the spotlight. I have attended courses on communication in schools, and all attendees agree: one of the most common complaints is about food. Whether we are from a public or private school, from Girona or Penedès, the canteen issue is always a struggle, and it's very difficult to get it right. Once a week, which almost always tends to coincide with the fateful day of legumes, I have to serve meals at my school. And after many hours of serving meals under my belt, I have come to the conclusion that, even if Ferran Adrià himself came to spherify olives, there would be complaints.

I see the nursery school's number on the screen and my heart stops.

Being a mother is never easy, and I think things get even more complicated at Christmas. I'm so grateful my youngest is already ten, and I've been spared a lot of things, like having a mischievous elf in the house who thinks up a new prank every morning. Social media is full of pictures of this elf, and I can only breathe a sigh of relief that this trend hasn't caught on with me. How many more imported traditions will we have to adopt? We've never even made activity Advent calendars at home (does that mean our children know what the term means?). AdventAnd fewer of those calendars where there's a gift every day. That said, I admit I followed the new tradition of going to the mountains to find the Tió, and look, maybe it wasn't necessary. When I was little, the Tió knew perfectly well how to get home on its own, and on Christmas Eve it would appear very dignified in the dining room and retire the next day. Job done. So, if you haven't gone out to search for the Tió with a map, don't worry: it will find its way, just as it always has. Perhaps we're also overprotecting the Tió and don't trust its autonomy enough.

My children have all kinds of friends. The ones who are always around. The padel friend. The otaku friend who's always online. School friends. Leisure friends. The children of my friends who are now their friends. The friend who's always making plans. The friend who never calls. The best friend. The only friend. Or the friend we can't stand.