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Revels and Rebels XIII

Dear Santa,

I’m sat by the Christmas tree. The fairy lights twinkle, the baubles sparkle, and the clip-on-birds look really confused. The white dove is looking at me wondering where peace went, and the robin, having given up on Christmas, is taking a nose dive towards the floor.

I understand the birds’ confusion. 2020 is the year where the world turned upside down and inside out. Bound at home, unable to hug friends and visit family, attempting disconnected living in a connected world. Which way is the North Star – who knows?

We’re all a bit like Odysseus down here, stuck between a rock and a hard place. On one side you have the rock of reality eroded and twisted by politicians and media. The other side, the six headed monster of big Pharma trading health for profit and barking down contrary ideas to protect financial growth. One thing is for sure, Capitalism is not interested in paying the ransom for Freedom.

You’ll be sad to learn that ‘Ho, ho, ho’ went out of the window months ago. Language isn’t used to unite us. Instead language is used as a weapon to fuel the divide. Words like 'essential and nonessential' brilliantly polarising us further, fanning the flames of fear and untethering us from our identity. Public signs tell us to sanitise hands and be kind. Radio commercials tell us to ventilate our homes. And against this backdrop, discrimination deepens. Hang on, what about that sign to be kind…

My Christmas wish this year is simple. Santa, I would like you to lead a revolution. It has to be you. Only somebody who is part fiction/part fact could cut through this nonsense. May I suggest you bring Rudolph with you? His red nose will be a much needed torch to shine through the darkness. If you were able to break through the shroud of fear for just one night and let in more light, maybe we’ll be able to see what we need to fight for: Liberté, égalité, fraternité. For without these fundamentals, we have nothing. Except perhaps Ithaca - the latest reality TV show. 

Exhausted but hopeful,

Louise Xxx

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Reference
Reflections on the year that was 2020
Blog post header image by mana5280 on Unsplash

Revels and Rebels is an annual letter to Santa. Since 2007, I've used the form of the Dear Santa letter to reflect on the year that's gone and ask for a wish for the year to come.

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