Day 46 of Movement Control Order 2.0
24 December 2020
As we anticipate the birth of Jesus, it appears apt to ponder and reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. Christmas should never be about the presents, parties and festivities. It is a celebration, nonetheless, but it should be a celebration of God's love for the world for giving us the ultimate present, His Son. It is also a reminder that all the celebrations in the world are meaningless, if we do not have God in our hearts. I love this quote by Roy L. Smith : "He who has not Christmas in his heart, will never find it under a tree.".
For many, 2020 has been Annus Horribilis (which means "year of disaster or misfortune" in Latin). But I prefer to think of it as Annus Gratia ("year of grace") and to give thanks for all the graces that my loved ones and I have received this year. Living in lockdown, full or partial, for most of the year, has made me re-examine life's priorities, reinforced the realisation of how unpredictable, fragile and ephemeral our life on earth is, cultivated new ties, strengthened existing bonds, compelled me to adopt new norms (I'm referring to the use of e-wallet and online banking), drove me to learn new approaches (Google Meet and the use of Edit & Create to mark students' work) and most importantly, served me a reminder to always put God as the focus of my life.
It is, undoubtedly, strange to find that we are not in a position to continue with many things and practices that we used to, in previous years. For the first time, I couldn't send Christmas cards to dear ones abroad. I will not be attending Christmas Mass in church with my mum; we will be attending virtual Mass. There won't be any Christmas dinners or gatherings either. But all these pale in comparison to the one thing that should matter most : having Jesus in my heart. And I have that! Hence, this Christmas is not Horribilis, but it should be Gratia, or even Mirabilis ("Wondrous").
And in celebration of the birth of our Lord, hubby and I had an intimate Christmas Eve steamboat dinner.
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