It's that time of the year, when there's a lot of festivity in the air. It's Christmas and apart from all the preparations for the birth of Jesus, there are also weddings galore. Everywhere you turn, you see shops all lit up and decorations adding colour to the facade of every store.
One can hear the sound of music and carols floating through the air. The smell of Christmas sweets coming out of every kitchen, makes your mouth water instantly. One may also catch a glimpse of people totally engrossed, in making Christmas cribs and stars, at every nook and corner. There's so much of activity all around.😊
I enjoy this time of year thoroughly, because of all the joy and happiness that comes along with it. Christmas is a time, when everyone seems to be back in town. Friends who live in different parts of the world, those working on ships and those who work in different countries abroad, all decide to come back home for a few days at Christmas time. It’s a wonderful time to catch up with friends, that you may have not seen in years.
Apart from that, Christmas is one of the two times in the year, when I get to spend a lot of time with my Choir, practicing Christmas carols and having a good time.
I enjoy this time of year thoroughly, because of all the joy and happiness that comes along with it. Christmas is a time, when everyone seems to be back in town. Friends who live in different parts of the world, those working on ships and those who work in different countries abroad, all decide to come back home for a few days at Christmas time. It’s a wonderful time to catch up with friends, that you may have not seen in years.
Apart from that, Christmas is one of the two times in the year, when I get to spend a lot of time with my Choir, practicing Christmas carols and having a good time.
This year, I was also part of another group of young people in my parish; and we were putting up a 'Christmas Musical' together. So, that again, involved long hours of practices, which were extremely fun-filled and enjoyable. Being in the company of friends always brings joy to my heart.🎶
On Christmas day itself, I will be spending the afternoon with all my cousins and my extended family, as an aunt of mine celebrates her birthday on the 25th of December. So, Christmas day is one day, when I get to catch up with my cousins, who I barely see right through the year, except on special occasions and family functions. Christmas lunch at my aunt’s home, is definitely something I look forward to every year, precisely because of that.
Amidst all this festivity and joy however, there is one person I always miss tremendously at this time of the year; and that is my little brother, Nathan. I really wish that he was still around. I envy my friends, who get a chance to spend time with their siblings, during Christmas time. Putting up the decorations, the Christmas tree and the crib together, probably singing a carol or two with their brother or sister, popping some sweets into the mouth, as it is being made, and being yelled at for that - The things that siblings can do together at Christmas time, are only things I dream about and imagine every year.
On Christmas day itself, I will be spending the afternoon with all my cousins and my extended family, as an aunt of mine celebrates her birthday on the 25th of December. So, Christmas day is one day, when I get to catch up with my cousins, who I barely see right through the year, except on special occasions and family functions. Christmas lunch at my aunt’s home, is definitely something I look forward to every year, precisely because of that.
Amidst all this festivity and joy however, there is one person I always miss tremendously at this time of the year; and that is my little brother, Nathan. I really wish that he was still around. I envy my friends, who get a chance to spend time with their siblings, during Christmas time. Putting up the decorations, the Christmas tree and the crib together, probably singing a carol or two with their brother or sister, popping some sweets into the mouth, as it is being made, and being yelled at for that - The things that siblings can do together at Christmas time, are only things I dream about and imagine every year.
I keep wishing and hoping, that I could also have a Christmas like that, spent in the company of my brother; but that was not part of God’s plan for my life. While I understand that He probably had better things in store for me, when he took my Nathan from this world; at times like these, when you’ve got to spend a time like Christmas, deprived of these simple joys of life, you can’t help but wonder ‘WHY?’🤔
Answers to questions like these, are not easy to find; and try as hard as one wants to, they’re not easy to find solutions to either.
Answers to questions like these, are not easy to find; and try as hard as one wants to, they’re not easy to find solutions to either.
So I guess, I just need to be grateful for the people that I still have around me at Christmas time. My parents, my friends from my choir and my youth group, my cousins and the rest of my extended family. Each of them has their own family to spend Christmas with; but for the few moments that I spend with them, they become my family. They help fill the space created by the absence of my brother in my life.
...And when I get back home and am all alone once more, that’s when I miss you the most my dear Nathan; and I can’t help saying this over and over again, even so many years after you’ve passed away, I wish you were still here. I love you Nathan and I’ll keep missing your presence in my life for as long as I live; but most of all, at Christmas Time.✨️❤️
