We exchanged the Sublime Birthday Person for the bizarre figure of an old man with Nordic clothes and apparel, in a red robe, with white beard, sinister laugher, who rides a flying sleigh, pulled by macabre reindeers with strange bells recalling horror movies of bad taste, solely giving material gifts to the children, instead of reviving Spirituality, the very essence of Christmas — all this triggered by a mere 1940s soda advertisement. And yet we assimilate the idea, in principle equally disconnected from any meaning for the symbolism of the sacred celebration, of trees full of lights and ornaments covered with artificial snow, in the middle of the tropical region.
With the pandemic and the sensible suspension of the broader festivities at the end of the year, in which people who do not live with each other and who often do not like each other forced themselves to “socialize”, descending into excesses of food, drink and taking swipes at each other, I hope we all reflect on the real meaning of the birth of Christ Verb of Truth!…
Benjamin Teixeira de Aguiar
Bethel, CT, metropolitan region of New York, USA
December 23, 2020