Merry Christmas

Maybe it is the weather, always ugly and rainy, or the crisis that has affected some of us very strongly, but the fact is, this year the atmosphere of Christmas is very different. I get the impression that it lacks serenity, the enthusiasm for little and big things; in the streets in these days you often see people sad, and very little smiling. Crossing a serene look is rare, it seems that everyone is living in their own world in which there is no room for others. It’s a shame: it is so easy to share with those next to you thoughts and emotions, and the joy of exchanging a few words with a stranger can touch hearts and make us feel good. The news that makes the front pages of newspapers and TV often is dramatic, it is true, but there is not just evil around us; many people need a smile and a gesture of affection and it is unfair to negate this for the few misfits. We teach our children to live with others, not to close ourselves in a virtual world of computers and electronic games. Life is outside, amongst people and not confined within the walls of the house. Christmas is the opportunity to give you moments of serenity, to be together, to talk and listen, to give and receive love, spontaneously, unreserved. Only then will you truly have a Merry Christmas.