It is that time of the year when you are shopping a lot for the sake of holiday cheer and for the sake of pure pleasure of self indulgence. It is that time of the year when you are planning little outings in the warm and cool weather of Calcutta to celebrate togetherness. Christmas is out there in the streets. The lights, the circus, the picnics, the drunken evenings. In this part of the world, Christmas is nearer to the hearth. It is about holiday cheer and hot wines. But more importantly, it is about the celebrations at home.
I couldn't come to terms with it for a fair eight years. And then I went out and brought a Christmas tree. That was last year. And the young man was a year younger and hence more volatile. The Christmas tree had to be kept beyond his reach, much like the way you celebrate Christmas if you have a pet dog. This year, even before the Christmas tree was in the scene, the demand list had been made! The fact that they are talking about Christmas in their kinderkrippe(pre school) was evident. So, we three went to get our Christmas tree yesterday. And we made a card for Santa which would subsequently include the demand list.
And then, yesterday, I came across this video of Israeli soldiers taking Palestinian children and detaining them. The image of Fawzi al-Junaidi being taken by 20 heavily armed Israeli soldiers seems now multiplied beyond counts. The fate of many children crossing the seas while fleeing from war torn zones had taken the media by storm a year or two earlier. I look at my little man singing "Wheels on the bus" and being drawn in to the world of planets, stars and black holes, and a sigh escapes.
What gift am I getting some dear ones asked. I should have said I have my blessings and am counting them.
down by the bay, where the watermelons grow
stand little men and women aglow
I look at them and I try to find
a little man still not in the grind
down by the bay, where watermelons grow
stands the little man with a heart to sow
I look at him and in washed down eyes
I hope he can run, i hope he can fly
down by the bay, where watermelons grow
there are no little man or woman aglow
I look at them and in blood red flight
I see their wings burnt tonight
down by the bay, where the watermelons grow
I thank my stars above the clouds and still aglow
I look at my field, lush green and wide
I know it is safe on this side
of the world
that tears itself apart
I count the blessings that light up my hearth.
Merry Christmas and happy holidays friends!
I couldn't come to terms with it for a fair eight years. And then I went out and brought a Christmas tree. That was last year. And the young man was a year younger and hence more volatile. The Christmas tree had to be kept beyond his reach, much like the way you celebrate Christmas if you have a pet dog. This year, even before the Christmas tree was in the scene, the demand list had been made! The fact that they are talking about Christmas in their kinderkrippe(pre school) was evident. So, we three went to get our Christmas tree yesterday. And we made a card for Santa which would subsequently include the demand list.
And then, yesterday, I came across this video of Israeli soldiers taking Palestinian children and detaining them. The image of Fawzi al-Junaidi being taken by 20 heavily armed Israeli soldiers seems now multiplied beyond counts. The fate of many children crossing the seas while fleeing from war torn zones had taken the media by storm a year or two earlier. I look at my little man singing "Wheels on the bus" and being drawn in to the world of planets, stars and black holes, and a sigh escapes.
What gift am I getting some dear ones asked. I should have said I have my blessings and am counting them.
down by the bay, where the watermelons grow
stand little men and women aglow
I look at them and I try to find
a little man still not in the grind
down by the bay, where watermelons grow
stands the little man with a heart to sow
I look at him and in washed down eyes
I hope he can run, i hope he can fly
down by the bay, where watermelons grow
there are no little man or woman aglow
I look at them and in blood red flight
I see their wings burnt tonight
down by the bay, where the watermelons grow
I thank my stars above the clouds and still aglow
I look at my field, lush green and wide
I know it is safe on this side
of the world
that tears itself apart
I count the blessings that light up my hearth.
Merry Christmas and happy holidays friends!
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