So this is Christmas…

What have you done? Another year’s over… a new one’s just begun…

This song was going on the radio and got me thinking… Last year was an amazing year for me, I learnt so many things and became so much more independent and I think I’ve grown up a lot last year too… but as a person what have I done for others?

Have I become indifferent to the sufferings of others, and become overwhelmed in my own world… Especially while in UK I rarely saw any poverty and even the beggars singing at the tube stations don’t seem to be as poor as the beggars that I see here everyday… But just because I cease to see them, that does not mean that they do not exist…

So what is the meaning of Christmas? Surely it’s not having lavish parties and shopping till you drop… Is it helping those in need and visiting friends and family, but shouldn’t that be done all through the year, and not just once a year? I guess it’s better to atleast think of others once a year rather than not at all…

Christmas is the birth of Jesus Christ in a manger; the people who came to welcome him to this world were poor shepherds and their sheep, so isn’t it ironic how people celebrate such a holy day by partying, and how the media has commercialised it so much that the way to show that you love your friends and family is by buying the most expensive gift!

Last weekend some of my friends and I visited and organised a party at Freedom House, in Kelaniya which is a home for the mentally disabled people who have received treatment and are better but have no place to go to as their families have disowned them due to the stigma of having a mentally ill person in their homes. It was very sad, as some of them talked about their own families and how they’re hoping that they would visit for Christmas. One person had found out that his parents had migrated to Australia without even telling him… We could see that they really appreciated the company… Made me think how lucky I am…