MERRY CHRISTMAS & JOYEUX NOEL 2020

 

Merry Christmas and Joyeux Noel
from LeDomduVin to all of you in the world
by ©LeDomduVin 2020

Merry Christmas and Joyeux Noël 

to all of you around the World 

2020 has been an extremely difficult year, all around the world, for all the reasons we know all too well...

Fortunately, it is coming to an end, with the hope of a better 2021. Yet, we all know that 2021 is bound to be a difficult year too.  

That's why, like every year, I wanted to wish to all of you, a "MERRY CHRISTMAS" & "JOYEUX NOEL", but more particularly so, this year, as this year, Christmas is far from going to be a "Happy", and even less a "Merry" Christmas for a lot of people around the world.  

I'm thinking about all the people who have been particularly affected, directly or indirectly, not only by the COVID-19 situation, but by all the situations we have encountered this particular year 2020. 

I'm lucky enough to still have my job, to still be able to buy presents for my kids, to be able to put food on the table and live in an apartment that I can still rent, under a roof where my family and I can feel safe and protected.  

However, this is not (and has not been) the case for millions of people around the world, for weeks, even months (probably a few years for some, as 2019 has not been a great year for many either, for plenty of other reasons).  

And, these are the people I'm thinking about, all the forgotten, all those who will not be able to celebrate these end-of-the-year holidays with their families and friends and loves ones and other relatives. Those who won't be able to put food in their plate, on their table. People who lose their home, their job, their situation, their life as they knew it.  

All of those who have been directly and indirectly impacted by the already difficult economical, financial, political and societal crises that were occurring in many countries, long before the virus came to exacerbate and aggravate the situation even more.  

All of those who have been impacted by the wars, the civil unrests, the political unrests, the protests, the genocides, the famines, the mass exodus, the epidemic and the COVID-19 pandemic too, and whatever else man-made absurd and irrational actions (and their consequences) that caused them to be in this situation.  

All of those who have lost everything in the fire, in Australia of course, but also on the West Coast of the US, in Brazil, and in other places too like in Africa (yet, it was barely covered by the international press, so barely no one has heard about it). 

All of those who, instead of fire, lost everything in the water, in massive floods, due to overflowing rivers, eventually a dam break, but more specifically due to ice and snowmelt, and unusually heavy rainfall, and even heavy and damaging hail, resulting from massive storms, typhoons and hurricanes (that seem to have grown stronger and more numerous from a year to the next).  

2020 was a year of unremitting and unprecedented extreme climate events and "supposedly" natural disasters, from heatwaves to droughts to wildfires to hurricanes to floods, many of which scientists have directly linked to human-caused climate change. Each event has taken a huge toll in lives lost and irremediable damages incurred. 

Such disasters cost many lives, and I'm not talking only about human lives, wildlife too and nature in general, all around the globe and everywhere too (air, water and ground), which added to the ever-increasing pollution is causing massive extinctions. 

Climate change includes both the global warming driven by human emissions of greenhouse gases and the resulting large-scale shifts in weather patterns, combined with human pollution and, in general, human activities, primarily fossil fuel burning, which increases heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in Earth's atmosphere. Like carbon dioxide, the largest sources being the combustion of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas for power generation, transportation and industrial manufacturing processes. 

To which we can add the pollution generated by the trash, either incinerated, dumped in the water and/or buried in opened and/or non-opened landfills. And all the pollution caused by all the chemicals used directly and or indirectly in the over-production of food and other agricultural products. 

Funny, how, over the last 6-8 months, with the COVID-19 pandemic dominating the news, some of these events (or even most of them) have rapidly and already faded into memory, while they caused (and are still causing every day) as much or even more damaged than the virus itself.

The government's misleading attitudes toward the gravity of the situations and how to prevent to put their citizens in danger, as well as, and more particularly, the mishandling of these various events, including the various disasters, but more especially the pandemic situation (in most countries), resulted into a very unstable world economy, civil and political unrests everywhere, protests, rise of unemployment and precarity, with millions of people losing their jobs, unable to make ends meet, or to simply live as they used to only a few months ago for some and/or about a year ago for most...   

And I'm not even talking about the public backlash against racism, during the Black Lives Matter movements or any other movements that occurred this past year.  

However, there are so many other subjects I could write about, in this post, and could even "re-do" the whole year 2020, all over again, with all the events that occurred, but that is not the purpose of this post.  

The purpose of today's post is for all of us to have thoughts, and even help if we can, those who have less than we have and are in essential needs. For those for whom living has become a daily struggle and may have dire consequences on the mid to long term, both psychologically and physically, as well as emotionally and morally.    

Consequently, in the eve of Christmas, a period of religious and cultural celebrations among billions of people around the world, traditionally marked by events such as gift-giving, family and other social gatherings, symbolic decoration, feasting, charities and helping and being with others, I just want to encourage everyone to give a hand to those who need it most. I will do the same.  

And right now, despite Clinton Samy Jr's quote "Oh, but that's the irony, broken people are not fragile", a lot of people are not strong and probably need your help, as in fact, they are fragile right now.  Affected by too many things in their lives and too many thoughts in their minds. 

As Bill Withers implied in his song: We all need somebody to lean on, at some point or another, especially when we are not strong. 

"When you need a hand

We all need somebody to lean on

I just might have a problem that you'll understand

We all need somebody to lean on

If there is a load you have to bear

That you can't carry

I'm right up the road

I'll share your load

If you just call me

Call me

If you need a friend" - Bill Withers

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND JOYEUX NOEL to all of you around the world, and think about others, this year, more than ever. 

Think about the people in your family, your friends, and all the other people you love and care for. 

More especially, with the virus becoming more infectious (these past few weeks), and who knows, maybe even more virulent at some point, and with all the people locked-in and/or living far from their native country, family and friends (like me), now is the time to think about them: give them a call, send them an email, text them, WhatsApp them or even better video-chat them.  

And you have no excuses, as there are so many tools you can use to reach out for them and to them.  

Enjoy the rest of this week towards Christmas, and may your Christmas be a "Happy" or "Merry" one, well spent with your family and/or friends (if possible).  

Until next time, be and stay safe, and take good care of yourselves and all your loved ones.  

Cheers! Santé! And Merry Christmas to you all.!

LeDomduVin (a.k.a. Dominique Noël)

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