It's the season to shower love on one another, strengthen family ties and bonds, and spread the message of peace around...When the clock strikes midnight tonight, the Catholics and Christians will celebrate the birth of Jesus, the Prince of Peace, which took place more than 2,000 years ago.

Even though, the real date on which Jesus was born is not really known, officially December 25 is declared as the day on which he was born into this world to save all mankind...

Like all religious leaders, Jesus too preached the message of love and peace during his lifetime. But sadly, today, what He and all the other religious leaders preached seems to have fallen on deaf ears.

We live in a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, and multi-religious society where peace and harmony could survive only if tolerance and respect are cultivated. Instead, what seems to be taking root rapidly throughout our Motherland is entirely the opposite. What's happening is destructive and deadly.

It's time to take stock of ourselves and focus on the most valuable message Christmas brings - PEACE and LOVE. One need not be a follower of Jesus, the Prince of Peace, to realise that without love and peace in our hearts, we could never live in harmony with the rest of the world.

As we usher in Christmas Day, let's all unite to strengthen the bonds of love, peace and harmony among all people who call this land their 'home'. This land is our land, and unless we help protect it and develop it, who else will? We cannot make our Motherland a prosperous place by simply focusing on our own selfish needs. We have to think of the welfare of all the others too...

So, let's reflect today on how best we could help others celebrate life as we celebrate the birth of Jesus. Christmas is a time to love, a time to give and a time to share. Anyone can be a partaker of these wonderful, precious humane acts that the celebration of Christmas is all about.

As children, you may no doubt be more caught up with the dazzling, material side of the season, but don't let the toys, the tinsel, the food and the fun blind you to the true spirit of Christmas. Think of all those who are suffering due to war, poverty and natural disasters.

We cannot forget our brave soldiers who are fighting to save our Motherland, and their families who are undergoing hardship, even struggling to cope with the loss of loved ones. We cannot forget our brothers and sisters still languishing in makeshift homes, trying to pick up the pieces even after two years since the tsunami.

Then, we cannot forget those living in refugee camps or in fear due to the destructive war and Mother Nature's fury. Nor can we forget those struggling with poverty, those who are orphaned, or those who are dying of hunger and AIDS. They are all in need of love and compassion.

What better time than Christmas to make a commitment to help brighten their lives in some small way at least.Remember, your efforts to spread the message of love and peace by your kind deeds should not be limited to just one day. Why not make your good deeds last throughout the year. Change the twelve days of Christmas into twelve months of Christmas!

Have a joyous, peaceful Christmas!

Bye,

Miru

The origin of Boxing Day

The word 'Boxing Day' may not be unfamiliar to you now as the tsunami which caused much death and destruction in Asia on December 26, 2004 is now known all over the world as the Boxing Day Tsunami.

But did you know why December 26 is known as Boxing Day or what actually Boxing Day is? Boxing Day, which is widely celebrated on the day after Christmas (December 26), could also be on the first public holiday which follows Christmas if the 26th or 27th fell on the weekend.

But what exactly is Boxing Day? Does it have anything to do with boxing? Many theories exist as to the origin of the day.

One story is that in feudal times (in the time of lords and serfs), Christmas was a time for the gathering of families, and that the servants would also gather their families at the manors of their lords the day after Christmas so that the lords would be able to give them the traditional gifts of clothes, grains and tools. Each family would get a box full of these gifts, thus the name Boxing Day.

Another story is that the servants would carry a box when they return to work after Christmas, so that their lords can put the coins which are supposed to be the end-of-year gifts for these servants into these boxes (like modern day bonuses). Another theory, similar to these, is that the servants of lords would have to work on Christmas Day serving their masters and thus get the next day off.

The food that was left over from the previous day's festivities would be packed and boxed and taken by these servants to their families. Another theory says that there was an early church tradition to open the donation box on Christmas Day.

The money collected would be given to the poor the next day. So, now you realise that Boxing Day has taken its name from the word 'box' and not 'boxing'.

The day is celebrated on most Commonwealth countries and is a public holiday in some. Boxing Day is now mostly a day for sporting activities; originally focusing on fox hunting, now it has expanded to football, cricket, horse racing and yacht races.

It's another day for families to gather for a special dinner and exchange gifts, just as much a part of tradition as the Christmas dinner.

But in Sri Lanka, the day will be observed as one of the saddest days in history, as this is the day that caused much death and destruction in the island. The Boxing Day tsunami of 2004 wiped out entire villages and caused over 30,000 deaths and damage worth millions of rupees.

The damage wasn't confined to Sri Lanka either. It affected many countries in the Asian region with Indonesia being the worst hit with over 200,000 deaths.

Two years after this incident, as we celebrate Christmas and get ready to usher in a new year, it's only right that we remember all those who fell victim to this natural disaster. May such a terrible Boxing Day never come again!

Project to grow bamboo

Bamboo is a kind of plant that's widely prevalent along the banks of rivers. Apart from contributing to the natural beauty of the area, they also prevent breaches of river banks by holding on to the soil with their roots.

A major project to grow bamboo along the banks of rivers has now been launched by the Agriculture, Irrigation and Mahaweli Development Ministry with the intention of protecting river banks. It's expected to provide a long-term solution to the breaching of river banks.

Accordingly, bamboo will be grown along nearly 11,000 kms on the banks of all 103 rivers of the country including the Mahaweli and its tributaries. Measures have already been taken to grow bamboo along a 147kkm stretch of the Mahaweli, from Hatton to Polgolla.

The project will be carried out by the Forestry and Environment Division of the Sri Lanka Mahaweli Authority. Nearly 1.5 million bamboo plants are estimated to be required for this project. The trees to be cultivated along the Mahaweli river have already been issued to the relevant zones by the Mahaweli Authority.

A bamboo tissue cultivation project has commenced at Kotmale to provide the required bamboo for the project. The Ministry also intends to promote the cultivation of bamboo on a wider scale so that the income levels of the people living on the banks of these rivers could also be improved.

Nearly Rs. 50 million has already been spent on this project. The Chinese Government has pledged a grant of 1.5 million US dollars towards the project. This method of growing bamboo along river banks had been utilised by China as a means of protecting river banks.

Hajj festival on 31st

December 31 is a special day for everyone. It's the last day of the year and the day when people all over the world get ready to usher in the new year. But this year, the 31st will be special for Muslims all over the world as the Hajj festival also falls on this day.

Hajj or the pilgrimage to Makkah (Mecca) in Saudi Arabia, which is the birthplace of Islam, is central to the Islam religion. This journey is made annually by millions of Muslims from all corners of the world.

They are brought together to share a "moving spiritual experience". All able bodied men try to make this journey, and women go on what's known as the 'lesser pilgrimage'. Although children are not under obligation to do so, many do visit the holy city with their parents.

The practice dates back to the time of Prophet Abraham and should be followed by Muslims at least once in their lifetime.

When the days are shorter and the nights longer

You would have noticed that since October, the evenings were getting shorter, and the darkness was setting in earlier. Now by 6 pm, it is very dark. Why?

The Sun is now over the southern hemisphere and moving towards the Tropic of Capricorn (Makara in Sinhala and Tamil), and getting further away from us. Hence, we now see the sun setting earlier and rising later than in the first week of September or the first week of April, when the Sun was over Sri Lanka.

The Sun appears to be moving between the two tropics, Cancer and Capricorn, which are 23.5 degrees north and south of the equator. As Sri Lanka lies between 5 and 10 degrees north of the equator, the Sun is directly over the island twice a year, in early April on its northward journey, and on September on its journey south.

That is why we had more daylight hours during those two periods of the year. Now, the sun is getting closer to the Tropic of Capricorn. A few days ago, around December 21/22, the Sun was directly over the tropic. The Sun will not move any further South. The next day, on December 22/23, the Sun moved northward.

Now it is mid-winter in the northern hemisphere. December 21/22 is called the Winter Solstice. Solstice is when the Sun's apparent path is farthest north or farthest south from the earth's equator, that is on June 21 and December 21/22. June 21 is the Summer Solstice.

From August, days got shorter each day in the northern hemisphere and with each passing day, it became colder. In October, birds began to fly south to warmer regions.

Now it is mid-winter and darkness sets in as early as 3.00pm in countries like England, the Netherlands and Denmark. In countries further north - Norway, Sweden, Finland, Siberia and Canada - there is sunshine only for two or three hours, or no sun at all for days in the northernmost parts. These are the lands that had the midnight sun in Summer.

From ancient times, people in those countries had noted that the Sun set earlier with each passing day and on a certain day or a few days, they saw no Sun at all, and they thought the sun was dead. But the sun rose again and each day, it climbed higher in the horizon and the days began to lengthen.

So the people celebrated the rebirth of the Sun with fire and lights which were associated with warmth and with greenery, a symbol of continuing life. The ever-green pine tree had a special place in this festival marking the Winter Solstice.

When Christianity spread to central and northern Europe, the birth of Jesus Christ began to be celebrated at the same time as the Winter Solstice. That is how December 25 became Christmas Day.

That the day marked the festivals of the Winter Solstice is now forgotten.

So, while Christmas is celebrated in mid-winter in the northern hemisphere, it is mid-summer when countries in the southern hemisphere - Australia, New Zealand, South America and South Africa - celebrate Christmas. Then the countryside is the very opposite of the scenes so common in Christmas cards.

Carols by candle light in the open, now a regular feature of the Christmas season, even in our country, could have originated only in a country celebrating Christmas in summer. This is Australia's addition to the festival. It was in Melbourne in the early 1940s that carols were first sung by candle light in the open air.

Sumana Saparamadu