nir­mala har­ry­lal

They have a say­ing Christ­mas is for chil­dren ...well in Trinidad, Christ­mas is for all ah we. Every coun­try has its own way of ob­serv­ing Christ­mas. An oc­ca­sion akin to the Chris­t­ian tra­di­tion cel­e­brat­ing the birth of Je­sus Christ and the long held tra­di­tion for chil­dren of San­ta Claus. How­ev­er, in T&T, Christ­mas has some­thing in it for all ah we. Yes, we can­not de­bate the hype with the kids to get them their toys for Christ­mas. For many of us, this takes our fo­cus on find­ing the right toys for the lit­tle ones. This means tak­ing some ex­tra trips to the malls or down­town. Then there is the ex­cite­ment of hid­ing the presents from the kids till Christ­mas morn­ing. Noth­ing could beat the joy of see­ing them open their presents.

For the kids al­so many places and or­gan­i­sa­tion put to­geth­er chil­dren's Christ­mas treats. Kids look for­ward to this an­nu­al treat where they en­joy the face paint­ing, jump­ing up and down in boun­cy cas­tles or tak­ing pony rides. Then the thrill comes when San­ta en­ters with a toy for every girl and boy, and yes, the kids scream rush­ing to­wards him. Yes, Christ­mas is a won­der­ful time for the kids... and then for all ah we too. On­ly in sweet Trinidad could Christ­mas have some­thing in it for all ah we.

For the mom­mies, the aun­ties, and the sis­ters, it's the fuss of the new cur­tains. What about the pastells, ham and turkey too? Yes, that's on the list of to do things. For the dads, it's the ex­tra fix­ing up around the house or stock­ing up on the drinks. Can't for­get the neigh­bour wait­ing for you on Christ­mas morn­ing with the tra­di­tion­al hail out Tri­ni style, "Ah neigh­bour, Mer­ry Christ­mas, come ah have some­thing for yuh." And yes, in true Tri­ni Christ­mas spir­it, there is the fam­i­ly across to share in the joy and toast for the oc­ca­sion wish­ing all Mer­ry Christ­mas and Hap­py New Year. And in all de mer­ri­ment, yes, we still find some time to give thanks by go­ing to church or say­ing a prayer in our own spe­cial way. And above all we make sure we think about those less for­tu­nate. Even though things hard as we Tri­ni does say it, we still find we could dip in we pock­et and give a lit­tle to de­serv­ing ones, and yes, wish them Mer­ry Christ­mas and Hap­py New Year too. Ah yes, sweet Tri­ni Christ­mas, some­thing in it for all ah we!