Warmest Panama Christmas Greetings!
Family and friends, It is my prayer that your reflections on the gift of Christmas will bring warmth to your hearts. Join with me in a prayer asking God to light us and make us the light of the world so that we might bring light to others.
This past week has been a bit sad for me…. I miss you, the rhythms and vibes of home Ok, ok! I’ll confess, yes I miss the ham, cake and sorrel too. Of course they are all available here – the Caribbean (especially Jamaican) presence in Colon, Panama ensures that there are lots of these things around. Many Jamaican Christmas traditions have been preserved in Panama. However, the Jamaican Christmas Fruitcake and the sorrel just does not taste the same way.
Any of you who have any acquaintance with J. Wray and his nephew, along with labels of red – as a true Jamaican you would recognize right off the bat that these vital ingredients are lacking in the traditional Jamaican Christmas Cake, and Jamaican Sorrel. I must remember to take back some of these ingredients to Panama upon my next trip home.
You my non-Jamaican visitors can either try to figure out what you just missed or send me an email at Marvia (at) marviaspanamajournal (dot) com and I will be happy to share a little Jamaican culture with you. Since I do not wish that my collar be confiscated, I have chosen to speak in parabolic language above.
Obviously, the Jamaican love for sorrel found its way to across the Atlantic. Sorrel is highly cultivated in Panama, and tends to emerge in Christmas as a festive drink. In Colon, there is a lot of sorrel right now. A couple months ago I discovered Sorrel tea bags in the Supermarket. You won’t guess, so I’ll just tell you – it’s called ‘te de Flor de Jamaica’ (saril)!! I am dead serious that is exactly what is on the box. So all you who not proud of your language, will know that the ‘tea of the Flower of Jamaica’ – name ‘saril’ not sorrel! I bought some and well – I still prefer it as a drink with all the necessary ingredients!
Now all this talk about food and prime ingredients nearly made me forget to tell you why I was sad this past week. Friends, I was just overwhelmed on Thursday after reading the Gleaner online, hearing news from Panama, and visiting Costa Abago on Friday. It is just so much of the same everywhere. The conditions of extreme poverty, the seeming powerlessness of persons to overcome their challenging circumstances, the senseless killings, the disunity in congregations and among people of various faiths, the suspicion and mistrust of each other, the corruption or otherwise tyrannical rule of organizations and corporations. Feliz Navidad indeed.
And like no other year before, the passage of Isaiah 9:2-7 has become more meaningful to me – “the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light” because this year – I have been asking ‘have we?’. Just who are the people who have seen this great light? We are certainly not living as people of light – quite the contrary, our world seem to be blundering about in complete darkeness.
Is it possible to be so completely blind that you cannot tell whether you have moved from darkness into light? You should be able to tell when you are near to heat but if you have been in the dark for such a long time that you are completely blind – utterly in a state that you know no other – can you ‘see the great light?’
So we can understand Jesus’ lesson that “blind cannot lead blind” by applying it to the question above. Certainly those who have seen the light, must guide those who cannot see it. But such a journey of faith must come with trust. Blind people do not easily trust because they know the road is treacherous and they cannot see the obstacles – to trust you to lead them is to lay their lives in your hands. What an awesome responsibility the faithful have!
So this Christmas as we show our gratitude to God for the gift of his son – let us remember that the light of the world has come. We who have seen the great light are called to lead others to the light – and this we do not only with our lips but with our walk.
Feliz Navidad y Prosperidad para el ano nuevo!
Paz,
Marvia
By the way…I must tell you, we are having worship at midnight tonight. I will tell you all about it at some point tomorrow night. This will be after I have attended about 4 family gatherings. It’s ok – you all know I am perpetually scrappy no need to worry about gaining weight. It’s the forbidden foods that will kick off reactions that I am refuse to think about. Oh well..
Let's Connect