CHRISTMAS CURRY AND A BOX SET

Sarupa Shah will cook a rendang curry for her festive lunch

Sarupa Shah is a business and mindfulness coach and author of the blog thesoulagentblog.com. She lives in London with her partner, Michael.

“In September I was convinced Britain would go back into a second national lockdown by Christmas. So my partner and I decided to cancel the traditional festivities of Christmas Day – usually spent with my extended

family – for the first time and spend the day on our own,” she says.

“Covid won’t take a break over the holiday so we are going respect that, regardless of the five-day relaxation.

“Normally I would have started planning for Christmas and making lists in November, working out what needs to be bought and when.

“I would have soaked the pudding in brandy weeks ago. This year I am not doing any of it – and I’m secretly pleased.

“We have ditched the turkey and trimmings and the most preparation I have done is practise a slow-cooked rendang curry recipe to have on Christmas Day. “We’ve also picked out

as our box set and are going to eat on our laps on the sofa.

“This is not about being ‘bah humbug’. We want to enjoy the time together and not feel more exhausted at the end of the December then at the beginning.

“Every Christmas we perform to some imaginary standard but after such a hard year, where people have suffered such loss, we all need to find ways to take the pressure off.”

‘Covid won’t take a break, so we are going to respect that’

Modern Family