THE CHRISTMAS TRUCE

Do you know what the Christmas Truce was? You can of course Google it and believe me the results are very interesting, but, in brief, it was an unofficial truce called at Christmas 1914, during which British and German soldiers, as well as some Belgian and French troops, literally laid down their rifles, hauled themselves out of the mud of the trenches, and exchanged, greetings and seasonal wishes.
It makes you think - about the spirit of Man, about the futility of War, about the power of the Christmas message.
I'm declaring a Christmas Truce of my own, though I cannot pretend to match the courage of the men of the Great War, the 'War to end all Wars'....
I'm calling a truce on the media war, on the barrage of gloomy, pessimistic articles, blogs, posts and tweets about the state of the economy, until well into the New Year. It doesn't look as if there is anything I can do about it anyway.
I'm going to be thankful for what I do have and stop moaning about what I do not have.
I'm going to stop trying to make sense of those split-screen TV discussions where everyone talks at once.
I'm going to watch every film that features a Santa though.
This is probably not going to be the kind of Christmas we have become used to. There are so many people out of work with little or no chance of finding any, and there are so many who have jobs but are not getting paid.
We shall have presents for the children, but not the adults - just as well that I was given a Christmas mug a few years ago because I am not expecting one this year.
We shall have a lovely meal to which everyone will contribute.
And we have out beautiful Christmas tree, glittering with lights, symbolising the hope we must hold on to.
So, join me, climb out of the trenches of gloom and depression, shake a few hands, exchange good wishes, and be of good cheer.
Happy Christmas to all my family, friends and blog followers!