Editor: Let me share my experience about a recent occurrence in Onitsha which depicts truly what Christmas should be and to some extent how we should lead our national life.
As a salesman trying to close the books for the sales year, I travelled to Onitsha to see some customers and while waiting in the office of one of them, I overheard a conversation between a fine Hausa gentleman with someone who probably was a furniture maker, telling him to fix properly the chairs and ensure it is transported to his house before December 20, 2012. Stunned by the tone of the discussion I patiently waited till he finished and since we were still waiting for the man we both came to see for business, (I presumed he came to buy some goods, while I came on a debt drive), I introduced myself to the Hausa man and handed out my complementary card. In turn, he simply introduced himself as Usman.
As we got acquainted, I mentioned to him that I overheard him being too pushy on the furniture maker trying to make him meet a particular deadline…why the hurry I asked? He bursted out laughing to my chagrin and retorted, is Christmas and New Year for you alone? Wait a minute! I said, you mean it is Christmas you are preparing for this way. He then went on to say that on Christmas day, he would kill at least two chickens and will invite his friends and those of his children to his home for a feast hence his fuss with the furniture maker. I then went on to ask him if he was in anyway worried about the political dichotomy that has been ingrained into our subconscious, that which is subtly bearing the form “Christmas for Christian and eld el-kabir (sallah) for Muslims”.
In answering the question, he shared with me how he, while growing up in Kano in the 80s as a young Muslim boy had Christians as a bulk of his friends both at school and at home. Likewise I narrated to him how I grew up in the same 80s in Lagos and how the Adamus, Uthmans, Murtalas made a bulk of my friends both at school and at home and how they used to throw their doors open to us anytime we called and how we responded in same measures. I went further to narrate to him how our homes used to be a beehive of activities at Christmas.
I recalled with nostalgia how some rascally fellows (now lost in the Diaspora) will have their breakfast with us in the morning before we went to church, book their lunch on our return and finally reappear in the evening to have isi-ewu pepper soup. All this we gladly did in view of a pay back during the Sallah when they will kill their rams! Our conversation was however interrupted when the man we came to see called out to me and I had to move on but one lesson I learnt that has always remained on my mind since that encounter was what we both shared as the real essence of Christmas which is one of spreading peace and joy … the reason Jesus came into the world as a baby. When we behold a baby the natural thing is to smile at him/her and open our arms in embrace or to carry the baby and show our affection.
Likewise let us welcome this Christmas and New Year with our hearts open and spread the joy and peace that comes with the season. Merry Christmas!
Emmanuel Afunwa, Enugu, Enugu Stat
