This
will be my 7th Christmas in Paraguay and I would think by now the
100 degree weather December brings wouldn’t be such a shocker.....but it
is. The heat coupled with high humidity
hits like a wall as soon as eyes open in the morning. It stalks you all day zapping energy and a
desire to do anything physical. This
kind of heat has a way of creeping into attitudes making them irritable and
emotions moody. It’s the kind of heat
that makes you long for the relief of a cold shower; relief that doesn’t last
because as soon as you’re out the heat and stickiness greets you once
more. You go to bed just as hot and
sticky as before the shower, with sheets thrown off, fan on high speed, and
wondering why you’re so tired when you did nothing that day but sweat.
It’s
in this heat that we preparing our hearts and home for the season of
Christmas. No snow, mittens or hot
chocolate for us in the Southern Hemisphere.
Instead we drink even more terere and eat watermelon. The kids jump in and out of the pool all day
and the adults sit as close as they can to catch their splashes.
Christmas
where we live is.....as most every day where we live is....tranquillo. There are a handful of Christmas trees (all
about 3 feet) in our neighbor’s homes and a few strands of lights on just a
couple houses. That’s about as outwardly
Christmasy as people get around here.
December isn’t a time of gifts and over-the-top decorations. December is about family coming home for a
brief but sweet visit. Country families
are torn apart mainly for financial reasons.
Dad lives and works in the capital to learn money to put in a modern
bathroom or add a barn to his property.
Daughters work in Argentina as maids and send money back for their
babies who grandma is now raising.
Children live in neighboring towns to attend school or help a relative
on his farm. They may not see each other
all year. In December you can feel the
excitement and anticipation as families await a glorious Christmas homecoming.
Family.
That’s
it. No endless runs to the malls. No
long wish lists to Santa. No late night
drives home from pageants.
It’s
all about family.
I
asked my children separately what they wanted for Christmas. Tyler and Micah said LEGOS, but the three
older kids said they couldn’t think of anything they needed and all they wanted
to do was be together. That certainly
wouldn’t have been my answer when I was their age; my room would have been
littered with toy catalogues and my wish list a mile long. But maybe I shouldn’t be surprised at my
children’s answer; after all, they’ve spent more Christmases in Paraguay than
in North America. And maybe all these
years of hot lazy summer days during the Christmas season when I am zapped of
energy and feet plopped in the kiddie pool WITH MY FAMILY ALL AROUND haven’t
been in vain. Even though I’m not
totally accustomed to a summertime Christmas, I am learning to embrace the heat
because it means we get to pass the terere around the circle a bit longer and
talk just a bit more AS A FAMILY. We
smile and laugh more as we spend time outside watching the kids perform stunts
and tricks for our entertainment. We’re
quicker to say yes to another hand of Skip-Bo or Uno or Monopoly. In the evenings, a family movie under a fan
on full speed is welcomed. Thanks to the
Paraguayan heat, Christmas for us is becoming synonymous with family and I
wouldn’t want it any other way.
1 comment:
Such a great post!
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