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www.thevillagenews.co.za
23 December 2020
Happy Holidays! Can you find the three elves that are hidden in the newspaper?
FROM THE VILLAGE NEWS TEAM What does one say at the end of a year such as 2020? In previous years reference has often been made to an annus horribilis. But for some reason not even those words can adequately express the long, tiresome, and confusing year we have all endured. This year has indeed been filled with low-lights and at times it was difficult finding a glimmer of hope among all
Stay safe this holiday
the bad news. But if you take the time to sit back, relax and reflect on our tenacity as a species, our will to live, our scientists and medical staff working miracles to help those in need, and our sheer determination to see this pandemic through, you will come to realise that there is indeed hope. When we look at the new year stretching out before us, let our hopes, not
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our hurts, shape our future. Let us all realise that there are so many things to still be thankful for.
is our sincere hope that you and your loved ones will be safe, healthy and happy in the coming year.
Let us celebrate hope, as it is this one small thing that allows us to see the light despite all the darkness.
This is our last edition for 2020 and we will be back on the shelves on 6 January 2021.
From The Village NEWS team we wish all our readers a prosperous and healthy festive season. We look forward to keeping on bringing you the good news every week in 2021. It
For those of you who want to stay abreast of the latest happenings, be sure to follow The Village NEWS and The Village Explorer on Facebook. Also bookmark www.thevillagenews.
not, is a minefield. You’re bound to offend at least one group of people, whatever you write.
De Waal Steyn
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Charé van der Walt
We bid you good-bye and good luck for now. May you all remain hopeful – we are indeed addicted to hope. This is the good NEWS – Ed
Jou Ma se Pa rup a pum pum
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com as we will bring you continuous coverage of all the news and happenings in our region. For those who want to follow the Dakar Rally, visit Floyd on Cars on our website and on Facebook and search for The Village NEWS on YouTube to follow all the video action from this epic race.
By Murray Stewart murray.stewart49@gmail.com
T
he instruction from my editor was terse and to the point. “It’s Christmas!” she hissed through her face mask while holding a pellet gun to my temple and rummaging around with her free hand for pellets. “So for Pete’s sake write something Christmassy! Comprendo?” I nodded, too terrified to ask who Pete was, and leapt out the window before she found a pellet. Back home, after swilling down a relaxing broccoli and spinach smoothie, I sharpened my pencil and pondered my options. Writing Christmassy articles, whether for Pete or
So, despite their bile-inducing tendencies, I can’t mention the slew of “Gee! I love Christmas” movies oozing out of our TVs, nor the disturbing noises they make. It’s a succession of strategically jingled sleigh bells, strung together with saccharin-sweet storylines and bowel-churning ditties sung by dewy-eyed B-grade actors in the snow. And I dare not mention the ostentatious strings of festive lights that don’t help Eskom’s battle against load-shedding one bit – so I won’t. And I’d definitely be hounded by at least one global organisation who claims it’s all part of a child’s spiritual upbringing. Well, perhaps – but there’s a danger that some kids might happily grow up thinking, correctly, that Christmas is dedicated to only one man – but incorrectly assuming he’s from the North Pole and wears funny clothes. He does, after all, bring them presents if they’re ‘good’ – whatever that means. Another topic I dare not mention is the awkward question about the real date of Christmas. Let’s face it, Jesus’ birthday, and the arrival of
to know all this, so mum’s the word.
Santa Claus falling on the same day doesn’t make good marketing sense. One would think that moving Santa to June or July was the obvious solution, but oddly enough the opposite happened.
And I’d get nasty emails from over-eager Christmas shoppers if I lamented the acres of discarded wrapping paper/plastic and miles of sticky-tape that clog the bins on Boxing Day, and end up in landfills to fester for centuries. So I’ll steer clear of that altogether.
You see, most mainstream theologians and historians agree that Jesus was born some time between 6 and 4 BCE, and probably in September. From October/November onwards the temperatures in that neck of the woods plummet, and sheep were penned in and sheltered for the winter. No self-respecting dyed-inthe-wool shepherd would be out in December watching his flocks by night, never mind three of them.
But on the bright side, I’m delighted to announce that Management is flying the entire staff, plus partners, on an all-expenses-paid holiday to the Railway Hostel outside Mynfontein near De Aar. Apparently it’s still the only Covid-free spot on earth, so we won’t have to wear masks or stay 2 metres away from each other’s spouses.
In 336 CE, Emperor Constantine, having recently converted to Christianity, substituted the pagan holiday to the Roman god Saturnalia with Jesus’ birthday. December 25 was a festive occasion anyway, and coincided with the winter solstice and the sun’s ‘rebirth’ towards summer.
Talking about spouses, spare a thought for America’s First Lady. Her poor hubby has misplaced his crown, and is really grumpy about having to find another job next year – and new digs. If all goes well for some Manhattan attorneys though, he won’t have to. They’re keeping a cell open for him on Alcatraz.
It was a stroke of genius at the time for the Emperor, because although the original Santa (St Nicholas, born in 280 CE in Turkey) was already gathering a bit of a cult following, it took a few centuries before his popularity almost hijacked Christmas altogether. But the kids don’t need
Anyway, I think I managed to avoid any offensive Christmassy stuff, and the plane’s about to leave so until next year, stay sane, safe and selectively secluded.
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