Remembering PAST JOYS

Two women share special memories of their childhood Christmases ‘The smallest things brought so much joy’

Josie Dom, 51, is a children’s author and lives in Essex with her 16-year-old son and 14-year-old daughter.

Christmases as a child for me were steeped in family traditions. My mum bought decorations for me and my brother Karl, now 52, to hang on the tree – mine were a little elf with a bauble head, and another in a silver ring. I still have them now.

Instead of stockings, Mum gave us pillowcases – but to slow us down on Christmas mornings when we’d rip open our presents with glee, Nan used to sew them closed. used to sew them closed Getting them open was a challenge, but it was all part of the fun.

I was a very timid child. I was bullied at school and didn’t stand up for myself – one of the reasons I now write children’s books on bullying. I was so shy I never used to tell my parents what I wanted for Christmas, making their job to find something I’d like a little trickier!

Christmas was the only time we’d ever see Mum’s ‘best China’ – Royal Doulton plates and bowls with a star pattern. They would be unveiled for the big day and packed carefully away once the festivities ended. I’ll never forget how shocked I was when backpacking in my 20s and I came across a plate in the same pattern, being used in the kitchen of a youth hostel!

Christmases were split between our home and my grandparents’ – we’d alternate years. I loved staying at my nan’s, not least because she lived near my dad’s cousin, Phil, who’d throw a party on Boxing Day. One year my dad and all the male relatives put on a variety show, singing and dancing for the rest of us. I recall laughing my head off.