A Christmas like no other

It sounds like a bit of an exaggeration to say that this Christmas has been a Christmas like no other. But in a manner of speaking, no Christmas is the same. I think we always strive to reproduce Christmases past and cannot even come near to its ghostly presence. The good memories created in childhood are what we hanker after and present Christmases never measure up. Not very wise or fair on our parts. I attended a pre-Christmas at the Zeme Kohima church. The church lay on the margins of town, a homely, welcoming structure of tin with walls of some light material. The roof was low and prevented cold drafts from making its way around the inside of the church. In other words, it was cosy and comfortable. The part of the program in which no other church can rival the Zeme church is the beating of the rhythm on the drum. After the pre-Christmas service, we sat outside around a bonfire, singing carols. The drummers walked round the fire, beating either a slow or fast beat on the drums and leading the singing. Seated around the fire, slowly turning warm as toast, and with the stars directly  above us, we felt the drum reverberate through our heads every time the drummer walked past. It was almost surreal.

Someone served big mugs of tea, another person handed out palm-sized slices of cake and the singing continued. It took me back in time to childhood Christmases when we were allowed to stay up late drinking tea, singing carols and sharing shawls with friends. Nowadays, town life has robbed us of the primal joy of sitting under the stars and warming ourselves by a real fire. People rush back home if they have attended evening services. The warmth of Christmas get-togethers are hardly to be  seen in this day and age except in the villages. We have lost something very precious. I feel sorry for the young ones of today who will never know what we have known and enjoyed. Are we really so sophisticated now that we no longer have time for indulging in childhood pastimes? The evenings were not only about singing. Around the fire we played numerous games. Moving about playing games was a great way of keeping the cold at bay. Hope we can retrieve that good old way of celebrating the birthday of our savior. 

Christmas in Dimapur in 2024 was also a Christmas like no other. The decorations were awesome. The Rengma church lit up the area with its gorgeous lights, and the same could be seen in other churches. The business establishments were not far behind with their brightly decorated fronts. Dimapur by night was a very metropolitan sight with lights twinkling back from every roof, and wall, and street corner, not forgetting trees and gates. Marvellous. I know people were complaining about the fireworks on the 24rth and 25th December. But when you take it in the right spirit, all of that exuberance seems to be an effusive celebration of the Christ child. Of course, poultry owners are rightly concerned about  their chickens dying from the poisonous debris of fireworks, and some complaints were aired that it is not our culture. However, may we take it all in a positive light. It is still the season of giving, and therefore the migratory beggars from Assam who have multiplied the beggar population in the commercial capital. Even these unfortunates have heard of Naga generosity during the Christmas season, and been drawn to the source. It’s not  a bad thing to be known as a generous people. 

Somewhere in Syria, Christmas has not been peaceful because an extremist group burnt down the Christmas tree and hurt the sentiments of Christians in the area. In another incident, the Christmas market in a German town was attacked and people were killed. We grieve with those who cannot celebrate their Christmas in peace, and we are doubly grateful that we can. 
 



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