Years ago, before Christmas was completely commercialised people forgot to send each other presents and just greeted each other with a hearty G’day and a smile.
Dear reader,
as we reflect on the year past, there’s a retrospective tint to this missive from our correspondent of the distant north.
Since Elon took over the editing, and publishing sides of pcbycp, we are onto skeleton staff. Hence the delay in publishing.
In actual fact the editor in chief is an actual skeleton. We’re not sure who he or she is, cept for the miracle of AI’ it’ is fully operable and can type faster than any of our former typing pool who were in the interests of efficiencies and the triple bottom line all sacked.
It’s a sacking kinda Christmas.
But for Frank a time for reflection to a time when Christmas was an expression of goodwill shared by a society. Society is currently being re- evaluated along the Elon and Geoff model and we’re hoping it can be made more efficient.
We all want efficiencies; it protects us from empathy.
Empathy is kryptonite to efficiencies, and perhaps that’s what Frank is referring to in this missive back dated just prior to Christmas but delayed due to on stream inefficiencies.
In some countries Christmas is a time for weeding out inefficiencies.
He writes;
Happy Christmas y’all,
As we drove through the City of Churches (Adelaide) a large sign reminded us that JESUS IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9rrtgwRsfk Aretha Franklin – What a Friend we have in Jesus
It is also the season in which we are urged come hell or high water to spend and spend to get that post pandemic economy kick started again. Growth at all costs. To many older people this is entirely counter-intuitive. During our childhood, churches displayed JESUS SAVES signs, and should we threaten to waste a morsel of food, we were reminded that in Africa there were starving children. Frugality was a virtue. We lived in a society, not an economy.
In other countries a time to celebrate non healthy foods
It is also the season when not that long ago there was a mass exodus from Yuendumu to Mission Creek where families and friends would spend Christmas camping out in the open and leaving behind a skeleton crew to collect the rubbish and keep the town functioning. Mission Creek which I thought was named after the Baptist Mission which had instigated the annual exodus. Years later I found out that it was an anglicised version of Mijilyparnta which is derived from the resin of the ubiquitous Red River Gum trees lining the creek.
The season when we might up our tax-deductible donations to charities supporting the most vulnerable, when we might be a bit more generous to buskers in the streets.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bSgoNNQ0m8&t=6s Joni Mitchell -For Free
The season where some of us would travel vast distances to catch up with friends and families. The season in which we might be friendlier to those who had given up their holidays to sell us our food or petrol.
It is also a good time to look in the mirror and think about those many who are worse off than us.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=In4UDYxxqVU&t=3s Joe South, Walk a Mile in my Shoes
Take for instance Johannes Mangurru, I wonder how he is faring.
Like the tree which was blamed for standing in the way of the oncoming vehicle, so too was Johannes charged with resisting arrest. Look for yourself and give him a thought, and wish him well.
Or a time to reflect upon those who died in care so that the triple bottom line was sustained. Sustainability will triumph in 2023
Johannes said he had a heart condition. The police officers wouldn’t get this, as they didn’t have any.
Those with so much, no show of heart:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkryXbJ14dE&t=8s Calexico- Across the Wire
See y’all in 2023
Frank