Written by Deborah Jordaan
Good day, beautiful people of this crazy place we call earth. I hope Mother Nature hasn`t been too hard on you as we have had floods in the Midvaal area. Not being a very good time for many people. As humans we bounce back, we have to.
Today I am writing about the festive season and the feelings it brings out in us. I for one did not celebrate for a long time as I had bad experiences through the years at this time. I eventually sat down with myself and realised I had been missing out on beautiful memories with family and friends. Yes, my mother has a birthday after Christmas and she passed away in January. It is a difficult time without her but I cannot keep mourning and thinking up excuses why I do not celebrate Christmas. This year I decided to celebrate and decorate my garden and even have a small tree in my kitchen. Just seeing my hard work makes me feel that I had accomplished more than I had accomplished in years. A lot of people get depressed and feel melancholy this time of the year. It can be lonely without anyone but do something to pay it forward, and embrace your life. You get to celebrate another year, no matter how bad it was or how things are going to be – just suck it up and be a warrior to yourself. Those of us that can celebrate must be grateful as there are little children who will never see a Christmas tree or get a toy as a present. The light in my grandchildren’s eyes makes it worth every effort it takes to forget the bad times.
Today I got bad news. A girl I had known since her primary school days had suddenly passed, she was thirty years old. Imagine her family has to spend Christmas without her so suddenly. How does one even begin to imagine how it will be? Yes, it is sad but celebrate her life and enjoy the festivities the way she would have celebrated it. I believe people that have passed would not want us to mourn, if they were here they would want us to celebrate, so do that in their absence to honour them. Christmas is not just about presents it is about paying it forward to the people that cannot even afford a meal. Paying it forward this time of the year should make you feel u did something good and you made a difference in someone’s life. Giving is so much more gratifying than receiving. As I am always writing about paying it forward I hope I reach people that do pay it forward so they in turn can motivate other people. Some families might just be able to afford a meal on Christmas day but the difference is there is love and gratitude. You then get the selfish child who receives a phone and it might not be what they want. That child should be receiving nothing. They should be sent to children’s homes on Christmas Day and should see the joy on the children’s faces if they receive a minuscule gesture for a present. Hopefully, it would teach that selfish child how to be grateful.
So in my parting words, I would like to say, embrace the blessings you have and spread as much joy and love as you are able. If you can even change one person`s day at Christmas you have achieved a lot.
From the Pen of ... 