It's been quite a week. A sumptuous funeral for my brother followed by interment in the soil of Croscombe? Both were very moving; David was a composer and his Requiem was sung beautifully in London whilst the Somerset air quivered with the sweet sound of Renaissance polyphony as he was laid to rest.

By way of contrast, I had to play 'Santa' to 80 or so nursery school children. Some were too scared to talk. I'm not surprised – all they could see of Santa apart from his red outfit was a pair of spectacles hidden like jewels in a foaming mass of nylon tash! Others enjoyed the experience and even indulged in a bit of humour, eg, Santa's text number: OOO HOHOHO!

It was a shame that we had to cancel the Elderly Person's Christmas party, such is the state of things wrought by Covid in its multifarious manifestations. However, we were able to send out personal 'hampers' of Christmas edibles and if you are currently wrestling with the wrapping of any of the contents, you'll know that you weren't forgotten.

As you probably know, the council runs a food club on Fridays. This week they had a glut of celeriac, that gnarled but delectable root vegetable. It can be mixed with potato to create the ultimate Christmas mash, or if you prefer roasted veg, chips of same can share the oven with the turkey.

Whatever you decide I wish you success and contentment on the big day.

Rupert Bevan