The following article was published in the North Renfrew Times (Deep River) on its weekly Wednesday edition dated 10 December, 2014
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07 December, 2014
Why we should celebrate 2014 Christmas ?
The time has come for the 2014 Christmas and festivities and we are getting in the mood to celebrate the good times.
This is the time of year when we unburden ourselves from all the worldly worries/pain and think about and thank for the gifts God has showered on us over the whole year – notwithstanding some difficulties and obstacles experienced.
Within family , many of us are fortunate to enjoy the family members and their achievements and accomplishments but more important are the grandchildren who give us unlimited love and joy.
We were overjoyed when our grandchildren participated in this year’s Deep River Santa parade . They were angels – unencumbered with worldly worries and strife.
Personally , I have passed the year peacefully/happily and with a normally good health for a senior though with advancing age I had my moments. I am sure my wife survived my occasional shenanigans and deficiencies .
As a community, we welcomed the newly elected Municipal Council members and a new Mayor for the town. We are hopeful that they will execute their responsibilities with aplomb and seriousness and work to streamline expenses so that the actual Property Taxes are reduced . Deep River Property Taxes are becoming a burden for all but mostly for the seniors – whether on pension or not.
In Canada we had the attack on our Parliament. A series of shootings occurred on October 22, 2014, in Ottawa. At the Canadian national War Memorial Corporal Nathan Cirillo, a Canadian soldier on ceremonial sentry duty was shot dead .
On October 20, 2014, Martin Couture-Rouleau deliberately rammed a car into a group of two Canadian Armed Forces soldiers in a shopping centre parking lot in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec . Patrice Vincent lost his life from this attack.
But we Canadians have weathered these events with great solemnity and without any generalisation of blame on any community/race/nationality /religion .
That is the spirit of Christmas – when we do not go into the blame game but take rational steps to diffuse the situation.
Yes, at times we need to sacrifice and hold our anger and frustration and look to our Creator for solace and guidance in life.
The baby born in Bethlehem fulfilled His destiny to offer himself as a sacrifice for our sins.
His life needs to be celebrated with all the commitment for service and good of the society.
The message is clear – whether one is a Christian by faith or not – the life of Lord Jesus and His actions were for correcting the injustices but with peace and love – that is the only way – otherwise ” taking an eye for an eye ” will make us all blind.
That is the reason for celebrating Christmas – not for worldly gifts/toys/electronics/etc but for a reminder /renewal of love and sacrifice for good of all.
The basic and most telling messages behind both the biblical (religious) and fictional (Santa Claus) stories of Christmas are the virtuous elements of humanity: goodwill, kindness, caring, compassion, and giving.
Pravin Shah
65 Rutherford Av.
Deep River, ON
TEL : 613-584-4469