‘Tis the Season to be Jolly!

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Dreamstime stock photo

December begins with a tug of the heart, my favourite month especially since it happens to be my birthday month as well. Not for nothing do we call ourselves Sagittarius, (I recently discovered that the word ‘Sagittarian’ does not really exist.) However, it is like the word ‘awry’, which for years, many of us mispronounced till we realised that it was ‘a-wry’ and not ‘awwry’!  Awful, really! I haven’t lived that down yet.

Montages flit by on the television of Christmas being celebrated around the world – green pine trees, shining stars and angels on top, stockings hung, glittering gifts galore, holly, mistletoe and tinsel – and just the hope that Santa will come down one’s chimney! 

Pixabay
Delicious Xmas feasts and the sound of fun and laughter as families gather to spend the festive season together! The sound of carols being sung, the story of Joseph and Mary and their miracle baby, Jesus, who was born in a manger add on to the aura of Christmas.   
                      
                                             
                   Unsplash                         

 On another level altogether, the noise of guns shut out all other sounds as innocents perish in the crossfire. Houses demolished, the population decimated, and the saddest thing of all, children being orphaned; little hearts broken, little minds marred. There are women who have been killed as they have scrounged for food to feed their families, men who have stepped out for errands and never returned. In those war-ravaged countries, there are no thoughts of Christmas, as they live from day to day, night to night, unaware if they will survive another twenty-four hours. The uncertainty of life, the insecurity, the perils of war engulf them as they send up fervent prayers to their God.

Kyiv, Ukraine - Unsplash pic

How do two such diverse scenarios exist side by side in a world that is increasingly turning polarised? Survivors have lived through two devastating World Wars. There have been conflagrations in various countries, the latest being the Russian-Ukraine conflict and of course, the Israel-Gaza confrontation.

 Mother Earth is also retaliating in her own way for the ill treatment being meted out to her through earthquakes, the melting of ice in the polar regions, tsunamis, forest fires, the COVID-19 debacle. Climate change is a burning topic on the minds of governments.

Climate Change - Unsplash pic

Maybe we are tiny cogs in a world too vast to be measured, but isn’t there anything we can do to retain the balance that would make us live better lives, wherever we dwell? Isn’t that the message of Christmas anyway, as also the message of all religions… create a world in which all creatures live together in harmony? 

The motto that we follow in our school reinforces this principle. “Let the peal of harmony be the appeal of all religions.” For it is in schools we must start, where we teach our little ones the significance of respect, gratitude and of course, the art of living together in peace and joy.

On Christmas eve today, my fervent prayer is a universal one.

May all wars and conflicts end, and be replaced with mutual understanding!

May this Christmas be a wonderful one! 

May peace, love and harmony follow us always!

 

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