Christmas Eve Memories!!!

10:11 pm
Cassadaga, Florida.

Today is Christmas eve.

I went to see the premier show of the new movie called “The Gambler”. It was a nice show. From a point of being a movie critic it was a job well done… A little predictable but well deserving of at least being seen once. 7 out of 10 stars.

From a reflective point – The movie has a lot to offer. Hope in the mid of despair. Focus mid of illusion. Finding and discovering oneself mid of being lost. A hint of love changing things around. Human conditioning through an individual perspective and so forth. A lot to be said in terms of reading between the lines.

However, the highlight of the movie was a huge rumbling in the sky and incredible loud rainstorm. So hard that it muffled the dialogue for a bit. Christmas Eve and rain on this day took me back to my hometown in India.

Growing up, there were very few Christmas celebrations that went without “Yunus Chacha (uncle/fathers younger brother). Yunus Chacha was not a blood relative. He was a “saint” as the masses addressed him. He was my father’s close friend. Their closeness came from the struggles of Bollywood limelight. Yunus Chacha was a musician. He was a singer, composer, a musical genius, a marvel to many. My father treated and mentored him like his own little brother and thus he became our uncle.

One Christmas Eve, when we had lost hope that he and/or his family will visit us this Christmas season due to whatever circumstances were. It had been raining that evening. Hard, and it is cold, and the rain is not showing any signs of letting up either. We hear a shrill voice through our window seeking attention of my father. My father cracked open the window and Aha!!! what do we see? Yunus Chacha and his whole family standing and unloading their bags and baggage’s while they were all soaking wet.

They were here!!! Yay! it was like a Christmas gift to all of us. In our small rental unit the space was limited (nothing new to any of us). The whole house went into a frenzy. We had to get creative to make space. The only thing that did not get moved was the “Christmas Tree”! Everything OFF the floor and the whole house went to a make shift living quarter until past New Years. Next few days, we had several musical gathering, lots of visitors aka fans, lots of attention and partying. It was all fun.

Yunus Chacha was a Muslim by religion and we were Christians. Our visitors in those few weeks of his stay spanned from all different religions and faith, and all walks of life, rich and poor, famous and ordinary. The one thing that vibrated in our house was presence of Spiritual Uplift through music and music alone. We shared with love, them and us. Christmas Eve, specially this one, was of fondness and love.

Fondness and love for all without prejudice, without hate, without discrimination, without saying it not mine, without saying Oh! NO I cannot, without saying what am I to do now, without bringing forward any feeling that limits me to be host. To be a host to generosity, warmth, love, compassion, camaraderie, friendship, creating the memories, sharing the last bite.

Dear ones, we all hove those moments in our life that will be with us as memories, some are good and some not so good, of friends, relatives, relationships, and more. Where do we keep them? in our hearts they stay warm! It does not take much to trigger these moments.

I have a fond memory of him today and of my parents. They are all in the Heavens and they are all watching me right now reminiscing my moments of nostalgia.

Make this a MEMORABLE Holiday Season!