Love Actually is all Around us at Christmas…

However cliché or juvenile subtly referencing the ultimate festive rom com Love Actually may be, I am doing it and proudly! Apart from the the divine combination that is Colin Firth, Andrew Lincoln and Hugh Grant, I firmly believe that Christmas offers us so many excuses to fall in love. Love truly is all around… actually!

Fall in love with food, wine, a festive song, a beautiful tree, fairy lights (I could go on but hope that you are getting the general idea). After a few conversations with friends and family, I discovered that it is often the simplest things that instil a sense of joy and love into the festive season:

‘Bread Sauce’ remarked my best friend from university…

‘Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without this subtly spiced, creamy wonder. Simple, delicious and essential. How anyone could even contemplate a Christmas meal without it, is totally beyond me. This is real culinary love.’

‘A Photograph with Santa’ my brother remarked…

‘Think about it… I know it was painful throughout our teenage years, truly MORTIFYING to think that someone from our respective schools might see us queuing up for a photograph with Santa in the department store. But we got past that, now it’s just hilarious (the four of us in our twenties queuing for a photo with Santa) and we have this amazing record of our family growing – it is so uncool that it is epically cool! I thank mum for making us do it and I don’t know another family that has anything close! I really love that.’

‘A Walk on Christmas Day’ was the simple statement from a friend’s father...

‘No matter the weather, a walk on Christmas day has two benefits. Firstly, we all work up an excellent appetite for lunch. Secondly, there is always time for a festive pint or glass of wine in the pub on the way. It’s the tradition I love most.’

‘London!’ exclaimed a work colleague...

‘It is so quiet over the festive period... Remarkable! You can just step back and take it all in. I always remember how lucky I am to live in this amazing city at this time of year… LOVE!’

So there you go, love actually is all around and I LOVE that it can be found in the simplest traditions, gestures and festive things. Cheers to that!