Late Christmas Eve, early 2010s. I’m sat in the car with my two youngest children, both under ten, waiting to pick up my middle son from his shift at the local CO-OP. Stars litter the sky with sharp, tight light, our breath sends dragon smoke clouds into the black frozen sky. The heater is dodgy and we’re either freezing or boiling, rolling car windows up and down despite the wish of snow in the air.

We sit for a while watching last minute shoppers rush up, only to find the doors locked at 8pm, turning harried and hespered for a mad dash to Tesco.

My kids are giddy with all the excitement of Christmas Eve, plus they adore their brother, and even though they they only saw him that morning, the atmosphere is all tight and bright with sparkle and shine.

It’s as my son comes out of work, laden with bags of food all going for free, that Mariah Carey bursts into life from the car stereo. it was one of those perfectly timed moments, like your life is a film and the perfect soundtrack plays along. The son is laughing at all the shopping and batting away his brothers and sisiters as he throws nets of satsumas into the back of the car. The other two are squealing, pent up giddiness exploding into excited whoops and and shouts and suddenly we are all singing along to Mariah, our voices straining as we shout out the words, chair-dancing as we make the drive home.

It is one of my fondest memories. It was nothing momentous or important, just a moment suspended in time.

So here it is.

What is your favourite Christmas song? What memories does it hold for you?