I'm dreaming of
a white Christmas. . .
. . . but I fear it may be black. Bruce
Geeves and Jen Cavanough consider another side of
Christmas.
When I was five years old, my family were in the United
Kingdom. We had arrived from Australia to meet my father. We
landed by boat on the day before Christmas and were driven
to 25 Whiterose Lane, Woking in Surrey. I can remember
walking into the room and seeing my father bent over,
putting together tracks of a Hornby-Triang train set.
Although it was the day before Christmas, my father was
assembling it. We decorated the Christmas tree as a family
ritual and went to bed.
In the morning I can remember looking out of the window
and seeing white stuff, like Lux flakes, falling onto the
ground. With my elbows on the window, I watched -
fascinated.
But the experience got even better. After going to
church, we returned home to presents, with discarded paper
and cards littering the room. Some relatives came to join us
for lunch. One of my uncles always arrived with a cardboard
box full of packets of jellybabies, each packet with a
silver coin on the top.
So you can see from this, I was one of those children
whose childhood was a bit of a dream, even to the extent of
having a white Christmas, a Triang train set and jelly
babies with silver coins.
But for some people, Christmas is not a dream. Certainly
in Australia it may be more 'blue' than white, and can be
one of the hardest seasons to get through, for several
reasons, including isolation from family members; not enough
money to celebrate or buy presents; lack of social networks;
loss of a spouse or loved one; tensions in the family; where
to go for Christmas dinner; the reminder of special family
times from the past - both good and bad ones.
It is particularly hard to participate in Christmas
parties, with media promoting a happy time when everyone
should be jolly. Do you remember Mr Bean when he is
preparing for Christmas and writes his own Christmas cards,
then opens his own front door to mail them through the mail
slot? He returns to greet his mail with delighted surprise.
Some people really are so isolated that they may not see
another person on this day of celebration.
How do we as a Christian community respond to this
Christmas season and to seniors or lonely people? Have you
thought of having Christmas dinner and inviting people who
are alone? Does your church provide opportunities for people
who feel loneliness more intensely at this time?
Some ideas for those who feel isolated and alone:
- Take an active part in the world that you live in. Be
aware of those who 'suffer' at Christmas.
- Don't splurge on food and presents.
- Get proper exercise and maintain a nutritious diet.
Research has indicated that a person's mental attitude is
much better if he or she gets proper physical exercise
and has a balanced diet.
- When you get up in the morning, take care of your
appearance and decide on something important to do for
the day.
- Make the day brighter for someone else. Work on
making some other lonely persons feel better about
themselves. Visit nursing homes, or 'shut-ins'.
- Acquire a pet.
- Talk about the fact that you are lonely. talk to your
minister, to neighbours or friends. Join in the Christmas
activities of your local church.
- Know that God is with you at this difficult time and
spend time in prayer. Read the Christmas story from the
Bible.
- 'Do decorations' - however simple.Christian families
could invite seniors to decorate the Christmas tree and
join in other Christmas activities.
- Choose a favourite Christmas song or write down some
of your own childhood memories of Christmas, and share
these in Sunday School or church.
- Phone another person with Christmas greetings or take
someone for a drive - find a nice café and share a
cuppa.
- Invite neighbours in for Christmas drinks - drop a
card in their letterbox.
- Make a list of all your blessings and thank God that
you made it through another year.
Jen Cavanough is a counsellor with the Family
Relationships Program at Anglicare
and Bruce
Geeves runs Nostalgia Now ministry to seniors.
Drawing by Dit Briggs
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