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| Goanetters annual meet in Goa is scheduled for Dec 27, 2005 @ 4pm |
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|The Riviera Opposite Hotel Mandovi, Panjim (near Ferry Jetty/Riverfront)|
| Attending.......drop a line to [EMAIL PROTECTED] |
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ALL n SUNDRY
By Valmiki Faleiro
valmikif at gmail.com
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YULETIDE TIDINGS...
Like Diwali unfailingly lights up cheer, Yuletide evokes warmth like
no other.
Christmas is not just about greeting cards, carols and cribs; holly
and mistletoe, snowflaked trees and shiny stars; cakes, wine and of course,
dodol n neureos! It's the season when nobler human virtues rise to the fore in
collective Christian consciousness.
Charity and compassion. Humility, as in the manger, if you will.
Goodwill and universal brotherhood.
Christmas is the time of the year when we revisit the less privileged,
as well as the ones we care. When we give and share.
This Christmas, permit me to share an anecdote, a true story that I
came across the internet some years ago (abridged to fit this column's word
length.) Meanwhile, have a joyous season!
THE DIME
Tim was getting cold sitting out in the snow in his back yard. He
didn't wear boots coz he didn't own any and his worn sneakers had holes that
barely kept out the cold. Tim had been there about an hour. He just couldn't
figure out how to get the money to buy his mother's Christmas gift, a red rose
he wanted to give her.
Ever since his father passed away three years ago, the family of five
had struggled. Not because his mother didn't care, or try. She worked nights
at a hospital, but the wage could only be stretched so far.
What the family lacked in money, they more than compensated in love
and family unity. Tim had two older and one younger sister. They ran the
household in mother's absence. The sisters had already hand-made beautiful
gifts for mother.
Here was Christmas Eve, and Tim had nothing. Wiping a tear, he kicked
the snow and began to walk to where the shops and stores were. It wasn't easy
being six without a father, especially when he needed a man to talk to, Tim
thought, as he peered into each decorated shop window.
Everything seemed so beautiful, but so out of reach. It was starting
to get dark and with a heavy heart, Tim turned to walk home. Suddenly his eyes
caught the glimmer of something along the curb. He reached down and discovered
a shiny dime. Never before had anyone felt as wealthy as Tim did that moment.
He strode to the first flower store.
He quickly turned cold when the salesperson said there wasn't a thing
he could buy with one dime. He limped to the next flower shop. Presenting the
dime to the shop owner, Tim asked if he could buy just one rose for his
mother's Christmas gift. The shop owner looked at Tim and his ten-cent
offering. Then, he put his hand on Tim's shoulder and said, "You just wait
here and I'll see what I can do for you." As Tim waited, he looked at the
beautiful flowers and though he was a six-year-old boy, he saw why mothers and
girls liked flowers.
The sound of the door closing as the last customer left jolted Tim to
reality. The shop owner came and moved to the counter. There, before Tim's
eyes, lay twelve long stem, red roses, with leaves of green and tiny white
flowers all tied together with a big silver bow. The owner picked them up and
placed them gently into a long white box. "That will be ten cents young man,"
the shop owner said.
Could this be true? No one else would give him a thing for his dime!
Sensing the boy's reluctance, the shop owner added, "I just happened to have
some roses on sale for a dime a dozen. Would you like them?" This time Tim did
not hesitate, and when the man placed the long box into his hands, he knew it
was for real. As he sped out of the door, Tim heard the shopkeeper
shout, "Merry Christmas, son."
As he turned, the shopkeeper's wife came in. "Who were you talking to
and where are the roses you were fixing?"
Staring out the window, he replied, "A strange thing happened this
morning. As I was preparing to open the shop, I heard a voice telling me to
set aside a dozen roses for a special gift. I wasn't sure if I had lost my
mind or what. A few minutes ago, a little boy wanted to buy a rose for his
mother with one small dime...
"When I looked at him, I saw myself, many years ago. I too, was a poor
boy with nothing to buy my mother's Christmas gift. A bearded man, whom I
never knew, saw me on the street and gave me ten dollars. When I saw that
little boy, I put together a dozen of my very best roses." The shop owner and
his wife hugged each other tightly. As they stepped out into the chilly air,
they felt warm deep inside.
The above article appeared in the December 25, 2005 edition of The Herald, Goa
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| Goa - 2005 Santosh Trophy Champions |
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| Support Soccer Activities at the grassroots in our villages |
| Vacationing in Goa this year-end - Carry and distribute Soccer Balls |
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