The Christmas Visit

The whole army, with a strong advance guard of cavalry, guns and infantry, proceeded to attack the enemy’s position, at the Nuwab’s residence.

In this small camp at Bareilly in 1840, there were a few men led by Colonel Jones of the 60th called “Jones the Avenger”. The place was still quite full of the enemy, most were said to be fanatics who were still hiding in the Nuwab’s house, which they would defend and fight to the last.

It was Christmas Eve, the European, native and Anglo-Indian regiment of soldiers at the small camp were feeling very cold and hungry, as provisions had not been supplied from the beginning of the week. It was now Friday and Christmas was the very next day. The fury of battle had ceased temporarily.

It was dark and cold, when out of the shroud of mist and fog a man’s voice called out in Hindoostanee, “ Don’t shoot, I am Abdul, I have the provisions”. Then out of the darkness stepped a middle-aged Indian man and a teenaged Indian boy, with a few bags of letters and provisions. The Colonel ordered a soldier to take the letters and provisions and to distribute it among the men. “Why did you bring this young boy with you to the battlefield ?”, asked the Colonel. Abdul replied, “ Colonel Jones Sahib, I had met this young fellow on my way here, he is from a neighboring village. He insisted that he should come with me to meet the soldiers, so I brought him along.” The young boy was talking animatedly to the soldiers who had gathered around a fire. He seemed to keep them all amused. An hour of peace passed in the blink of an eye.

Suddenly, the battle resumed, as shots rang out through the night. The enemy was on the attack again. The soldiers rushed to their positions and manned their guns. Some ran into the trenches around the camp and fired from their camouflaged positions. The war resumed with renewed force. Small shiny bullets flew through the air and toppled grown men, like lifeless puppets, soaked in dark flowing blood.

Robert, a young soldier from the front lines was among the first to be fatally hit by bullets in the first hour of the renewed battle. As he started to bleed profusely, the young boy who had come along with Abdul, went quickly and knelt beside the wounded soldier Robert and place his hand on the gaping chest wound, he next whispered something in the soldier’s ear…….

The battle waged on, there were a lot of casualties. Three hours later the war ended, the enemy’s position was finally captured, the guns were put to rest. The wounded were attended to on both sides. As the injured were being taken off the field for medical attention, Colonel Jones asked Rashid an infantryman, “Have you seen Abdul and the young boy ?”. The soldier said “ No, Colonel Sahib, the two of them must have left during the battle”.

The next morning was Christmas Day and the men who had survived the battle greeted one another in joy. News arrived from base camp that the letters and provisions would be arriving with gifts for the men, as Abdul the delivery man had died five days ago, on his way to the battlefield.

The young soldier Robert recovered from his wounds, he kept saying that the Christ child visited him that fateful night and had saved him from certain death. The words that the young boy had whispered in his ear were, “ Jesus saves, your time has not yet come to die young man”.

Were the soldiers at Bareilly in 1840 visited by the spirit of a faithful friend and the young Jesus, on the battlefield where blood flowed, that Christmas Eve?

The Musical Christmas Cards

In a little colony in eastern India called Lawrenceganj there was no joy and no happiness, as there was no music and no children. There was a strict law in the town, which stated that no music could be played in any home, until a child was born in the township. For the last ten years no child was born in this small settlement.

It was Christmas Eve, the streets were deserted, a sharp cold breeze had driven everyone off the streets. Even the drunkard’s liquor would not keep him warm, in a building, shivering beneath a staircase. The town wore a grim and deserted look on the eve of Christmas. The gray streets and shadowy buildings cast phantoms into the night.

The silence of the shadowy night was shattered by the harsh screeching of the wheels of an old car, which came noisily into the town. The bright headlights were shining and the car stopped near the Doctor’s Clinic at the end of the dark street. The Doctor had closed his small clinic and gone to bed. The old gentleman lived with his family directly above the clinic. The car from Mayurnagar must have been on its way to the city nearby.

A young man stepped out of the car in a great hurry, he went to open the back door of the car and a young pregnant lady stepped out. It seemed that she was heavily pregnant and in labor and the young man was frantic. He kept ringing the bell of the Doctor’s Clinic several times. The elderly Doctor opened his window and seeing the situation below him, he along with his wife and two teenage daughters rushed to the aid of the young couple.

It was two minutes past midnight on Christmas Eve when the young man’s wife Radha gave birth to their first born, a healthy and happy baby boy. Raj was very proud to be a father. The Doctor, his family, the young couple and their newborn child went into a sound sleep, after all the excitement of the night.

The Sun rose brightly in the sky the next morning, it was Christmas Day. The town seemed to be happier as news spread of the birth of the first child after ten years in the small township.

That Christmas morning every citizen of Lawrenceganj found a beautiful musical Christmas card playing “Silent night, Holy night”, placed in each of their homes beside the Christmas trees. Each card was filled with Christmas wishes and New Year wishes. All the Christmas cards were signed by “The Christmas Angel”. Lawrenceganj was alive again with music, joy and the sound of a child’s laughter.

Grandma’s Christmas Cookies

Tracy always looked forward to Christmas, since she was a child. She loved the Holiday season, the festivity in the air and a Calcutta Christmas with her grandparents and family, which made the festival so very special.

Every year the pattern of preparations was the same or similar. Christmas was three weeks away. Tracy’s parents were getting their home ready for the occasion. The Christmas tree with colorful decorations were bought by Tracy’s Dad from the New Market.

Two weeks before Christmas, Tracy’s mother and grandmother would cut all the dried fruits for the Christmas cakes. They would then take the flour and ingredients to the Bakery in McLeod street, to have the cakes baked.

During the Christmas week from the 22nd to the 24th heaps of egg shells could be seen scattered on the pavements outside the Bakeries, where lines of people were gathered to have their Christmas cakes baked.

Grandma started making all her Christmas cookies at least ten days before Christmas. Tracy loved the smell of the “rosa-cookies” and the “Kul-kuls”. Tracy enjoyed helping her grandmother make all these tasty Christmas treats for the family and friends, as Tracy’s two brothers helped their father make the Christmas crib.

Tracy would always carry these special memories and cherish them, even though she would be in Canada, which was simply miles and miles away from the small city of Calcutta, where her family still lived.

Children like Tracy never forget the sweet moments spent during Christmas and New Year celebrations with their families, friends, wherever in the world they may be. A special wish goes out to all those who are far away from their parents, grandparents, brothers and sisters, “Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2003” with your families and friends.

The Christmas Email

It was Christmas Day when Arlene received the Christmas email message filled with the good news of…

Arlene C. had left Calcutta 45 years ago for Australia when she was a teenager. It was now 45 years later, she was a grandmother and she wanted to find her long lost cousin Dulcie, who had lived in Calcutta all those years ago.

Arlene approached a known agency in Calcutta which promptly started a complete search for a substantial fee. Her friends had warned her to be cautious when selecting an agent to track down her cousin.

As part of the complete search, advertisements with photographs, a brief history, contact address, phone and email were printed in several newspapers and magazines throughout India. A lot of false information was also received which was investigated. In addition to this promotion, special posters were designed and distributed among clubs, associations and church groups. The “cousin-search” was also posted on several Anglo-Indian and Indian web sites, groups, clubs on the Internet.

One year later, on Christmas Day, Arlene received an email from her cousin Dulcie, in Canada. She had eventually found her dear cousin who was a grandmother, and a widow with two married children.

All searches do not necessarily yield fruitful results. However, at least an effort needs to be made. Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2003 and may all your dreams, hopes and wishes be fulfilled.