Christmas Eve

The morning was spent in the office, working on various lists and talking with people on the phone. The Skype system is so wonderful. The old system of international calls which needed to be booked hour ahead of time and had long wait times which broke up every conversation are part of the dinosaur past. All those skills for talking via that method are becoming obsolete, along with making four carbon copies of lesson materials and letters on a portable typewriter. Computers are so much easier on fingertips than pounding out multiple copies on a manual machine. Say the word Telex machine to your children and check out the look they give you. Now, via the wonders of internet, a phone call can be made anywhere in the world for pennies or less.

In the afternoon I went out to El Ciprés to visit a couple working with MCC on a small fish project and conference centre. The streets were full of people dressed up and waiting for the evening’s festivities. Stores were still bustling though so lots of merchandise to see. I wondered what to take out with me and was making scant progress until I came to the couple selling fireworks. We managed to communicate the explosive nature and pattern of each of their wares and for $5.00 I had a small bag of firecrackers, sparklers and one lovely 15” long by 4” diameter tube of something with showers of sparks on the picture. Now we were ready to truly celebrate the coming of Christmas.

On the way down the hill into their property I saw my first snake here. It was only about 60 cm long and was much like a brown and black striped garter snake. It saw me stop and decided on a hasty retreat for which I was duly appreciative. My African strategy with snakes was to first find the machete and then, when head and body were separated by a minimum of 20 cm, go and get the snake guide book to identify it. It seemed so much easier to say, “Oops, not poisonous,” than miss something more troublesome. Obviously, to me, that is not an issue here. When I see people cruise through tall grass without a thought of what is in their way I realize that snakes of the bothersome variety are not an issue. Rule number one when going through grass in Africa: Let someone else go first.

At the MCC centre, I met a couple from Ohio who are working with disaster preparedness and long term recovery out of Tegucigulpa. They were, delightfully, birdwatchers and, even more amazing, hobby beekeepers who had tried top bar hives. Needless to say, we had lots to talk about ... besides kids.

A few village children were down visiting as well so my fireworks were the ideal gift. Lots of entertainment as we tried different combinations of firecrackers and so forth. We left the big tube till dark. That turned out to have a wonderful trajectory and spark trail, a very satisfying thunderclap but nothing in the way of showers of coloured balls of sparks. No one was disappointed though.

After a supper of mashed potatoes and roast pork (talk about comfort food), we visited with the stream of drop in visitors until time to get in the truck and head to Santa Cruz for mass. A number of boys took the opportunity to ride in the back for a chance at ‘big city’ lights and action. Josh and Marie squashed a few of their dreams by insisting that they would have to go to church – so much for cruising the streets.

The church was quite full but we all found seats. In addition to the huge crèche scene, there were long, beribboned garlands of plastic pine on every pillar and light string. The music group was busy pounding out a rendition of “Navidad, Navidad, Feliz Navidad” (you’ll figure out the tune shortly) as we entered. Being Christmas Eve, the incense was out in full force and soon filled the church with its fragrance. The priest needs to take lessons from the Ethiopian church that we attend on high holidays. The general rule there seems to be that if you can see the middle of the church you need to add a couple more spoonfuls of frankincense. We were in no danger of that last night – just a tasteful amount. The music group surprised us with two acapella numbers. The whole group, drummers, electric piano players, guitarists and rhythm section all were part of the choir. Very well done. Four parts even.

After mass, I stopped to greet a few people I knew and thank the music group for their work. The Christmas Eve fireworks were popping merrily as I headed home. Midnight came and with it, the popping became a barrage. The whole city broke out in bangs and crackles. I went outside to watch and the sky was filled with clouds of firework smoke. Setting off loud fireworks inside small compounds makes for great amplification. Someone within twenty blocks or so had a super duper stereo system which they shared with all of us. Happily, the noise died down within an hour and people got on with eating and family gatherings.

There were no Christmas bells a ringing but, there were bells as we exited the church. The ice cream man had parked his cart at the foot of the stairs and was ringing out the good news of cold treats for all to the parishioners.

It is 8:00 a.m. and the left over firecrackers are being set off by early risers. I am headed to the office to post this and to make some Merry Christmas phone calls.

God Rest You Merry.

Bryan