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The most important gift of Christmas
• Christmas is about sharing
Sometime after the birth of Christ on that first Christmas day, the baby and his parents were visited by wise men from the East. They came to honour the sacred occasion with loving gifts of frankincense, gold, and myrrh. Their kind offering gave rise to a tradition that now seems insepa rable from the Christmas season: giving gifts to those we love.
Stories about gifts of love were later associated with Saint Nicholas and others, whose charitable giving became legendary and served to reinforce the importance of sharing with those around us.
In such giving, it isn’t just the gift that is valuable; it’s the love behind it. The distance the wise men travelled and their love for the newborn King were part of the gift! Indeed, the true spirit of holiday giving is the spirit of love and sacrifice for others.
One young man loves Christmas not because of what he receives but rather because of the delight he finds in giving special gifts to people he loves. He plans his gift-giving for months, deciding on just the right gift for each person on his list. He can’t afford to buy anything expensive or elaborate, but he can afford to give his heart, to think about what would bring joy to the one whose name is carefully written on the tag placed on each gift. Sometimes, when he thinks it would mean the most, the young man gives gifts of his own time and effort, such as a promise to shine shoes, wash a car, or do some other personal service. These are the gifts that both, he and the recipient, usually cherish the most and remember the longest.
This is a lesson that we learn again every Christmas, that it’s the love and sacrifice behind the gift that make it truly meaningful. Of ten the most valued gifts are given by those in need themselves. That’s part of the magic of Christmas: you don’t have to be rich to give gifts that come from a richness of love.
It’s been said that not all of us can do great things but we can do small things with great love. The true spirit of Christmas shines through when even small gifts are given with great love.
Love, family, and faith make Christmas meaningful. Things bought from the store may fill your house and surround Christmas trees, but it doesn’t fill our hearts with joy and contentment for long.
During the holiday season, the more we chase after merchandise, the further we get from the true spirit of the holiday. And how many ends up buying things that they either do not need or cannot afford because they want their loved ones to have a “happy” Christmas. We all know that gifts don’t buy endur ing happiness. In fact, social scientists have confirmed that “chasing possessions tend to make people less happy”.
So if we want our loved ones to have a happy Christmas, we would do well to remember the experi ence of Dr Seuss’s Grinch, who tried to steal Christmas from Whoville by taking away all of its material things, the presents, the feasts, the decorations. But to the Grinch’s great surprise, the people of Who ville still gathered on Christmas morning to sing and to celebrate. Only then did the Grinch realised that Christmas, in its purest form, was much more than he thought it was. It cannot be purchased at any store, and it thrives in our hearts no matter our material possessions.
When we think back on Christ mases, we remember that what made them memorable was not a gift we received, but an experience we had. We recall a happy moment of sharing. We think of a beloved tradition, cherish the gladness of gathering with loved ones, and reread the beloved Christmas story. We remember a warm fire, a snowy night, a favourite song. But we almost never remember the pile of gifts under the tree.
So this year, be deliberate about the holiday activities and traditions that you share with loved ones. Create memories, build loving bonds, and have experiences that outlast throwaway things. Don’t waste the season running from store to store in pursuit of fleeting treasures. Rather, in the words of Him whose birth inspired Christmas, “Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven. . . . For where your trea sure is, there will your heart be also.” (Matthew 6:20–21).
By Samuel Enos Eghan
Email: samueleghan@gmail.com
THE typical itinerant salesman in Sikaman is a herbalist. He is normally a slim macho with the capacity to perambulate the expanse of area covering the triangle of Accra-Tema-Ashiaman. In short, he can walk a total of 60 miles a day, marketing a product that cures every disease, including poverty. 
The door-to-door herbal pharmacist advertises his product by word of mouth. He has nothing to do with the Food and Drugs Board (FDB). After all, his concoctions do not feature on FM stations.
Those herbalists who cannot walk to propagate the herbal gospel, liaise with drivers of mass transportation and their mates. They are, therefore, given the chance to sell their products on Benz buses that ply the routes.
Normally, the herbalist starts his sales message with a prayer and Bible study. He asks the passengers to bow down their heads in supplication to God the father, the son, the Holy Spirit.
When a herbalist asks the passengers to close their eyes and bow their heads, Moslems on board naturally feel offended. They feel that the herbalist has no right to assume that every passenger is a Christian. They think such an assumption is an affront to Islam.
So a Moslem on board will raise the hand for a point of order. He’ll remind the herbalist that it would be in his own interest to mind his language.
“Be careful the way you address people in a public place. Not every person here is a Christian,” he’d state assertively.
Of course, the herbalist will promptly ignore him, but would all the same “watch” his tongue. Who knows whether or not the Moslem brother is inspired by Quoranic zeal to defend the tenets of Islam to the hilt?
When he starts saying, “Wallahi!” and “Inshallah!” it could be the beginning of proclaiming Islam as supreme, a point which must be driven home with talibanic precision.
So the herbalist must tread carefully lest he steps on fire.
The herbalist could even add a measure of mirth to it all, by announcing that Christians on board today have very interesting company on the journey, but that should not detract from the business of the day.
The Moslem brother will weigh the words carefully and offer a wry smile.
He must be careful the occasion does not degenerate into the use of semantics and proverbial oration to deride his conviction that public utterances must be mindful of religious sensibilities. He has made his point very clear and expects that it is taken in good faith in the interest of a peaceful journey.
The herbalist will now open the New Testament and preach salvation, stating clearly that salvation can come only through Jesus Christ and NOBODY else.
The Moslem brother will now start twitching his moustache. The visible and almost revolutionary reflexes of his upper lip can be an indication that sentiments have begun superseding reason, and the outcome could well be tragic now shift uneasily in his seat.
The time has come for him to also express his right to the religion of his fore-bears. He’ll put his hand into his pocket and rise to his feet. The time has indeed come!
This article was first published on Saturday, September 9, 2006
When the cause of a particular problem like sickness, disease, sudden illness, a social issue etc. are not known, it stands to reason that resolving it becomes a huge challenge.
Citizens would understand the government when public announcements are made to the effect that government is trying to find a solution to the issue, even though it is taking a while for it to be resolved because citizens are rational beings.
On the other hand, if the solution to a particular issue is known to everybody but the government for whatever reason, is dragging its feet in resolving it, citizens become frustrated and begin to lose trust in their leaders.
One such issue is the heavy traffic along a section of the Kasoa – Odokor road. A short stretch of bad road between the traffic light at the Weija Government Hospital and the entrance to the entrance of the overhead that leads to the N1, is the cause of the problem but nothing is being done about it, day after day, week after week, month after month. Thus is clearly unacceptable.
Another issue that requires urgent attention is the lack of pavements along a lot of streets in parts of the various Municipal Assemblies. Exercise is a prerequisite for long life and healthy living and for those of us who it has become a way of life, this issue of people putting up structures right to the edge of the drains beside the roads, are making life difficult for us.
We are compelled to walk along the roads, putting our lives at serious risk. Pedestrians should never be compelled to compete with vehicles on our streets and roads. Roads and streets are made for vehicles and pavements are made for pedestrians. That is the norm. Any attempt to normalise a situation where pedestrians are mingling with vehicles is insanity.
It is the road regulations that makes it so and therefore district or municipal assemblies are to take responsibility and ensure that spaces for pavements are not encroached upon. Citizens have rights that must be protected by their leaders and making pavements available to pedestrians, is one of them.
When we hear of teachers having sex with students, it appears it is something recent. It is not a new phenomenon. It has been there since Adam. Perhaps this issue is getting much attention due to the proliferation of social media. It was an open secret in times past when Teachers were in relationships with female students and some married them immediately after completion of school.
Some teachers were also known to be having unholy interactions with female pupils but due to the times that these acts occurred, human rights issues and the awareness around it, allowed such unscrupulous teachers to get away with their crimes.
Now we are in a different era and so a Headmaster is now in hot waters. He is alleged to have raped about 19 female students and as usual, some officials tried to cover it up and are also in hot waters and their actions or inactions in the matter are under investigation.
Why the man has been allowed to roam freely without being arrested is simply mind boggling. It appears that the law applies differently, depending on who you are. This issue came to public attention sometime in August this year, yet the police had not arrested or invited this man for question regarding the rape allegation.
It has come out that he is a Constituency Secretary of the ruling party and the question in the public domain is that, is it because he is a political figure that is why he is still walking around without questioning? I believe in the rule of law so let us hold our breadth and let the proper thing be done.
The police must however be seen to be active in this matter. God bless.
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