It’s Christmas time again:

LET’S MAKE ANOTHER’S LIFE HAPPY THIS CHRISTMAS

By Carol Aloysius

As the countdown for Christmas gets closer, young and old alike are infused with the same spirit of excitement and anticipation, one experiences at this time around.

Like moths swarming around a flickering lamp, hordes of shoppers throng the myriad departmental stores, the pavement stalls and just anywhere, where they can find those last minute gifts they need to wrap up for their loved ones.

The sounds of Christmas carols swell from the darkest alley to the epi-centre of the city and neon signs and multi coloured lights flashing from roof tops and high rise buildings, dazzle the eye making rainbows arcs in the skies.

As the electronic media blast the air with popular Christmas melodies that make you want to rock and roll, I step into an empty church for a few moments of peace and quiet.

Except for the brightly lit vestry where a handful of choristers are busy rehearsing for the Christmas eve carol service and midnight mass, the church is dark and silent.

As the glorious songs of praise to celebrate the momentous event of Christ’s birth swirl around me and the haunting music fills the church, my eyes rest on an object which might otherwise have escaped my attention if not for the fact that there was someone else besides myself and the choir also present in the church.

Going closer, I found it was an empty wooden crib lying besides an unlit Christmas tree- a reconstruction of the shabby manger where the Christ child was born 2,600 years ago in a barn meant to house barn animals.

The old basunnehe (carpenter) who later told me he had fashioned this crib 10 years ago, was busy laying on the mud floor, and covering the roof of the barn with straw. “This crib which I made in my house, along with the stable, took me several weeks to complete. For me, it represents a labour of love for my saviour who sent His son to us to save us from our sins”, says Peter Appu, who has been a member of the Church congregation from the time he was christened sixty years ago.

“So where is the Christ child? When will you put the baby Jesus in His cradle?”, I asked.

“Just before Christmas, when I will place Him inside this crib in His swaddling clothes, the only clothes He wore, even when the Three Wise Kings appeared from the desert to worship Him”, he said. This reminds me of an observation made by an eminent author and regular contributor to RBC Ministries in their Christmas issue of Daily Bread, who says evocatively, “Christ could have wrapped Himself in some mind boggling show of power lighting up the skies with His presence in a celestial show of glory.

Instead, He chose to wrap Himself in the likeness of men, born into the family of a humble carpenter. This ‘gift wrapping’ is significant because it goes to show that He shared our struggles in life”. Revd. Shihan Fernando of the Kollupitiya Methodist Church underlines this sentiment when he says, “Jesus Christ came to this world to save sinners.

This is the underlying principle of Christmas. For us, it was a birthday, and for Him it was coming to His own world. From the poor manger to the bitter cross, He came to die. That was His mission. His death was our healing”

Inspired

Inspired and invigorated by my surreal experience in that dark empty church, I walk with a new spring in my feet, to join my family on their shopping spree. We head to a leading departmental store where we prepare to spend the next couple of hours choosing gifts for one another.

At the doorway standing like some benign sentinel, a fat jolly looking man wearing an elfish mask and sporting a long white beard that trails over a bright red cloak edged with white fur, greets us:

“Ho! Ho! Ho! Welcome to Santa land”, he says greeting us with a booming voice.

“Santa!” shrieks my littlest grandchild Gabrielle who has just turned five. Abandoning us, she rushes towards his open arms, her dark curls flying across her face like a spider’s web. She is joined by her two brothers Herschel and Daniel. Santa wraps all three of them in a huge bear hug with his podgy arms. It is a hug that nearly smothers them as they come up gasping for air. By way of an apology, he quickly pulls out balloons and other goodies from his large sack of toys which he has slung over his shoulder.

Wish

As other children join the queue to be hugged by Santa and receive gifts from him, we head to the toy counter already overflowing with children under 12. years of age.

The planning that has gone to make this the most attractive counter of all is proof of the dedicated team of employees who obviously want this Christmas to be a memorable one for their young customers.

A special area in one side of the store has been cordoned off for them with an ‘Out Of Bounds to Anyone Over 12 years’. Only parents, carers and a few young staff members trained to deal with children and amuse them, were allowed to enter the enclosed area brightly lit with enough space to let children bounce their balls, play games, drive trains, buses and cars in a make believe world where kids ruled the world.

Superman dressed to the hilt, accompanied by Batman were also there to give a helping hand and allow themselves to be photographed with the kids.

Tired and hungry, we walked into a star class hotel nearby for some refreshments. It was then that I spot the Wish Counter. A large till stands next to a Wishing Well near the counter. On it is written’ Make a wish come true”. “Can we really make our dreams come true by wishing here?” my elder grandson Herchel asks.

The young boy at the counter takes pains to explain: “Have you ever come across children who are less fortunate than you? Children who have no parents, no toys, no books to read and no food to eat or even clothes? There are thousands of them out there, many of them victims of the recent floods, and the terrible landslides that deprived them of their homes and shattered their dreams of a bright Christmas and future.

This counter is specially for them. If you want to help, give them a gift – something you treasure, like a toy, or pocket money or some clothes which you enjoy wearing. That will be the best way to mend their broken hearts and give them some joy.”

He had barely stopped speaking, when one by one, a small knot of youngsters began emptying their pockets of monies they had collected for presents to themselves or their families or friends.

A few asked their parents to lend them money which they promised to return. My three grandchildren, pledged to sponsor a Christmas meal for a single child as a joint present along with a gift from their collective pocket monies. It was a small sacrifice they considered well worth.

Tinsel

No amount of tinsel wrapped presents could have made us happier than these spontaneous gestures from this country’s youngest citizens. True, greeting cards, exchanging presents and enjoying a delicious home cooked meal on a well laid out festive table are part and parcel of our time honoured Yuletide customs and traditions.

Yet, living in an increasingly commercialised world of moral decay and broken relationships, the most meaningful gift of all perhaps is being willing to sacrifice something we treasure to make another’s life happier and brighter this Christmas season.