AS I wish all Guyanese a Merry Christmas and a blessed and prosperous new year, my greetings are tempered with sorrow.

I am saddened that I will not be celebrating this season with my twin son, Ishmael, who died in a car crash last August. And I extend my heartfelt sympathy to the family and friends of the five army officers who perished in the recent helicopter crash.

Our nation was shaken by the death of these dedicated soldiers as we began to mourn their passing. It seems that they were ‘snatched away’ just as suddenly as my son.

However, against the spectre of death, we are yet drawn together giving each other encouragement and support. For we know, ‘This too shall pass.’ Our intense grief will give way to smiles as happy memories surface and healing inevitably takes place in our indomitable human spirit.

On such a day as this we can be grateful that we are alive, while we recognise the fragility of life. In this season of caring and sharing we can help each other by sharing mutual experiences of grief and how we coped, and by giving of our time to someone who may need it more than a wrapped gift.

So often we get caught up in the commercial trappings of Christmas – shopping, shopping and more shopping – that we forget the reason for the season.

As a holiday celebrated across the globe by Christians and non-Christians alike, the birth of Jesus, The Christ, has come to mean a time of ‘goodwill among men.’

It has come to signify a time when we not only share gifts with family and friends, but also give to those in need, as we are able.

It is also a time for us to consider the condition of our human family, especially those who cannot celebrate as we do because of hardship caused by natural disasters rocking the world, or the man-made kind in the form of war and violent conflict plaguing many countries.

While we eat, drink and make merry our thoughts and prayers should also be directed to all of those who have little or nothing to eat or drink on this day and have no roof over their heads.
As we enjoy Christmas songs and carols let us be mindful of those whose only music right now is the discordant notes of guns and bombs. As we sing ‘Joy to the world,’ let us pray that it becomes a dawning reality and not a distant, unfulfilled wish.

The Salvation Army (International) summed it all up so well, saying, “Our lives, country and world are far from perfect. There are always challenges and struggles we face both personally and collectively.

“The good news of Christmas is that even when the world or our circumstances change, the message of Christmas is timeless, because Christmas is about the birth of God’s son – Jesus. It is about how he came to give us love, hope and joy. That message doesn’t change from year to year. When there is so much bad news and devastation in the world, this is good news worth celebrating.”