Its Christmas eve, tradionally, a time of year to rest, relax and take stock of all that has passed and the year that has been. I look back on the last year, I realize that I do have much to be thankful for. A very serious health scare (trust being in and out of hospital to put things in perspective for anyone), horrible terrorist attacks in Bombay, death of loved ones, all of this has served as a reminder to really appreciate what I have. Its things like this that also made me even more grateful for the good things that happened, and the need to not get trapped in the materialistic, self obsessed, arrogant society we live in. My own memories of Christmas growing up in India consisted of dreaming of "snow" and decorating the small Christmas tree my mum always bought us with a few cheap christmas decorations bought in two stores on Sachapir Street in Poona. Real Christmas trees were out of the question, a tiny fake one was as good as it got! Something like this one here...
Anyway, while it looks pretty miserable without decorations, with decorations, this tree was pure magic (at least for me it was!). It was also at Christmas time, that piano & singing practice was done in earnest, because I invariably ended up playing in the choir festivals and concerts, and also because of the whole "be a good student and you'll be adequately rewarded by Santa Claus, parents, music teacher, whoever was in the position of power at that particular time"!! As a child of the eighties and nineties, I never once experienced the bizarre culture of extravagence and materialism that I can't seem to escape from now. I can remember every single Christmas present I ever received until I was sixteen, from a playskool glo worm, to a toy monkey (a present that was repeated every few years!), magic markers, the book Little Women....you get the idea. These were, by no means, "thrift presents", but they were all things I cherished and I still have all of these. I never ever dreamt of having a wishlist of expensive presents that I asked for, the very thought of it seems bizarre and unbelievable. And I did get as excited about going to Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, as I did about getting presents. As a non-christian, I was probably the most excited kid in church, and by the time the last carol was sung, I remember being nearly dizzy with anticipation. Maybe it was the novelty of being allowed to stay up so late, or the fact that Christmas itself was such a "foreign" tradition, I simply don't know.
I also remember one particular Christmas, and one that I will never forget. I was twelve years old, and with my mum and brother in Goa that December. While walking to midnight mass on Christmas eve, we passed by a home for elderly women (in fact, for anyone who knows the Calangute-Baga Road, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about). I noticed, at 11 p.m, about five elderly ladies looking longingly out onto the road, at the people passing by. There was something about the way they looked at us, the passers by that affected me deeply. 
I remember asking my mother why they were in that home, and she explained that they were either very old, very sick, often a combination of the two, and were too poor to live anywhere else. The next morning, on Christmas Day, I used my new magic markers, and some plain paper and made about 30 Christmas Cards, each with a different design, and a different message on the inside. I didn't even stop to think that many of these women were too old to read, some of them couldn't read, and some were blind and very ill. I then begged my mum for permission to let me walk down to the home on my own - on the way I stopped at a shop (that still exists!) and bought 10 bars of Cadbury chocolate. I went into the home and started handing out the cards to each woman, and then one of the nuns who was volunteering explained that they had some women who were very ill, bedridden and unable to even speak. I gave her the chocolates and asked her to distribute them evenly. Some of the ladies were so overcome they had tears in their eyes, while others were just so shocked that a young person had visited them. Many were glad to have someone to chat to, ask questions to. I always remember being so happy walking out of that home, feeling like all my Christmasses had come at once!
I recalled this when, earlier during the week I was battling it out in Dublin city centre, trying to find a couple of small presents. In the two hours that I spent in town, I was pushed so many times, by women and men who were in such a hurry, to get to the next shop with their many bags. I was also treated to a fair bit of attitude, from exhausted retail assistants, who clearly wanted to be anywhere but in the crowded shops. I noticed around me, young children, teenagers, with mobile phones, iPods, credit cards, and everyone so obsessed with buying things, that they forget things like basic courtesy, happiness, civility and manners. This year more than any other, I feel very grateful to be alive, and to be with near and dear ones. I also realize now, more than ever before, why it is important to actually try and do something, no matter how small, that has some impact on people, animals, anyone less fortunate. I sound like a hypocritical matyr sometimes, but I wish I could change how people talk to one another, how children learn about the things that really matter in life, but at the end of the day, nobody is perfect, least of all me! I do think Charles Dickens (ironically, one present I received this year was a copy of David Copperfield!) summed it up beautifully when he said "I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys".
