Reflections on Christmas
by Elsie Procter
Did you have a good Christmas? Plenty to eat and drink and family around you? Then lucky you! But here, Bent' writer, Elsie Procter, reveals that not everyone is as lucky at Christmas time. Some have to live lives of absolute luxury.........
I was lucky this Christmas. I spent part of it in the home of a millionaire, and a real eye opener it was too! Swimming pool, tennis courts, private lake, stables, all the trappings of wealth. An old manor house (Elizabethan), a jewel of a place set in beautiful grounds, and furnished with the finest antiques. My 15 year old neice though was unimpressed, "You'd think, with all their money, they would have nice, new furniture." she said.
Well, I was impressed, I can tell you! Especially by the fact that each bedroom had its own bathroom. You may find that amusing, but I was brought up in a very small house, that had no bathroom at all. Bath night was on Sundays, in an old tin bath in the kitchen. There were four of us, and we had a rota system, and oh, how I used tto hate it when it was turn to be the last one in.
I should at this point explain that I was living it up at the invitation of my sister, whose husband is the gardener there. The people who own the manor were away, holidaying in the sun, and my brother-in-law was acting as caretaker. I, unashamedly, confess to having a good 'nosey around' the place, as I not usually in the habit of living in such surroundings, and do not have any millionaires in my social circle.
I was, as they say, completely gobsmacked by it all, and tried everything: the baths with no taps to stick in your back, the luxurious showers, and my first (and last) taste of cavier (Yeuk!).
Did I enjoy my stay there? You bet I did! Every moment of it, and wished I could have stayed a bit longer. But then, all good thinkgs come to an end, and soon I was back in beautiful, downtown Bentilee, and Reality, musing upon this Christmas, and Christmases Past.
Those past have not very often been good, or merry, to me, and I remember a particularly miserable one when all I had to feed the kids was egg & chips, my finances being in a more than usually precarious state. I got to thinking about this, and other forgettable Christmases, and got to thinking about all those other people who had a really miserable time this year, and were glad when it was all over.
People living in 'cardboard cities'. How did they fare over this Festive Season? A meal of egg and chips would have been luxury for them. No glittering tree, and decorations. No presents to open. No family to love, and be loved by (perhaps the saddest thing of all). And let us not presume to lay blame or pass judgement on them, for we do not know what Fate might have in store for us, do we?
For many pensioners too, Christmas must have been a sad time. Perhaps they've lost a beloved wife or husband, and things are not the same. Maybe they have no family, or worse, one that doesn't care.
Then there are the unemployed, and the sick and disabled, all struggling on an already inadequate income, and for whom Christmas is just an added burden. Their income does not allow for it, and when you don't have much, it can be hard to summon up a feeling of Goodwill to All Men!
There are those, too, who are caught up in wars, who have lost their homes, and maybe their families too. There are the people of countries whose leaders have spent, or rather mis-spent, their nation's wealth on weapons (e.g. Ethiopia :- Ed), and power bargainings, and left the people without money or food. Add to this untold cruelty and misery, and it begs the question 'Will it ever change?'. Will there ever be Peace and Plenty for all? I ponder on these things and feel sad that there does not seem to be an answer, and I feel there does not seem to be an answer, and I feel the hopelessness of it all.
Have I depressed you? Well, I am sorry about that, but if I have made you think about the less fortunate people of this world, and made you think that maybe you are luckier than a lot of otthers, then good! That can't be a bad thing, can it? Happy New Year Folks!
Next IssueTransvestite Vicars -- Should they be de-frocked?
Copyright The Bentilean 1999
I was always determined to inject humour into the magazine, hence the jokey plug for the next issue.Back to: The Contents Page | The Archive | The Bentilean Main Page