Looking
For Christmas
A welsh village with its streets blocked off and a few adult Santas
and the shepherds with the obligatory tea towels walking about
aimlessly. Freezing air amidst the smell of hamburgers and the
festive flash of glow sticks, glow swords and flashing headbands.
Youngsters hurtling about with cheery Christmas expressions flung
at each other in expletives. Festive cans of spray streamers sprayed
onto and into everything. The mayor laden with medals like a tree
and the town crier ringing a large brass bell and shouting who
knows what in a foreign welsh-like language. There in the middle
of the street stands a donkey, ears twitching with a hint of spray
streamer stuck to its fur. Mary and Joseph nearby with yet more
tea towels wound around them to keep out the bitter cold. Stalls
interspersed with more glow sticks and swords, fluffy slippers
and dark mysteries at the back of unlit corners of tables. Shops
open late and customers cramming in to warm up. Steaming cups
of coffee and chips. MMMMM chips. Territorial army festive band
drumming and marching with tinsel wrapped around the drums. Bang
bang bang. Back up the street the donkey and Mary and Joseph have
disappeared, leaving, well leaving something hot and steaming
in the middle of the road. Next down the road a mince pie race
at full tilt. Erm has anyone got a shovel? A shovel anyone A SHOVEL..
Never mind and too late ..oh ..um... Off to the side and in one
corner a space machine with two seats turning and twisting inside
its little metal cage.. Sit inside if you feel young enough and
you get turned and turned and turned faster and faster and slower
and faster and upside and inside and which side is what side and
where is anything anymore... The all male choir has at last assembled
on wooden tiered steps. In front of them is the crib with a blanket
wrapped around..could be a log, definitely not a glow stick, possibly
someone's baby. Thats it where have Mary and Joseph gone???? Their
baby is here. The donkey ? anyone seen the donkey? Well some have
seen more of the donkey than they wished to but at the moment
no-one knows where it is. The first carol begins after much giving
out of red booklets. Sounds like Hark the Herald tune but not
the words. The female vocalist with the microphone sings and it
comes over the tannoy system on the 4x4 belonging to the mayor.
Then the shepherds gather by the crib. This parentless, donkeyless
child has more visitors than Santas grotto. Has ANYONE seen the
donkey? Well erm..No don't show me your shoes..has anyone seen
Mary and Joseph??? Gone home?? what do you mean gone home??? The
kings come onto the scene at just the right point and probably
the right words but who can tell. The female vocalist is telling
people to imagine the nativity scene in all its fullness as some
of its fullness is missing.
Then
there is a whole street full of people singing and suddenly it
is full of harmonics and blending and rich tones, sopranos, and
tenors coming out of the spaces of woolly hats and tousled hair.
This surging melody spiraling and rising above and beyond the
fairy lights, the hot soup and mulled wine, past the roof tops,
up and up and straight into the heart of all and everything everywhere
and just like that something changes forever,...and just maybe,
maybe Christmas has come that bit closer for those that did and
didn't notice.
PR
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