SPREADING CHEER, NOT COVID, THIS CHRISTMAS

““The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.” – Will Ferrell, ‘Elf’.”

By Fiona Millar

Well folks, it’s that time of year again when the Christmas puds are being made, the over-sized turkeys are being eyed-up, and the Christmas wish-lists are being written. I hope you’ve all been good law-abiding citizens this year!

It’s finally December 2020; the month we’ve all been waiting for; the month to end this dreadful and, depending on how you look at it, uneventful year. Furthermore, we can all breathe a sigh of relief into our face masks that Christmas has not been cancelled. Whilst the 25th of December will have a different feel to the normal boisterous, cheerful, bright-light, tacky-jumper festivities, anything that offers light-hearted distraction from the pandemic is worth it. In fact, Christmas is under more pressure than ever to bring the cheer, the sparkle and the happiness to people’s homes and faces.

But what if we leave the tinsel, the tree, and the turkey alone for just a second and take a moment to think about those who are in much more dire straits than us, because isn’t Christmas meant to be about giving as well as receiving? After all, after a stressful year of stockpiling toilet paper don’t we deserve to indulge ourselves this Christmas season?

Whilst we can and should enjoy ourselves, we need to also look beyond our own desires for material comfort and ease. To be honest, it’s not surprising that lockdown has affected so many people mentally and negatively as we have all had far too much time to think about ourselves. It’s become so easy to lapse into self-preservation mode without giving a second thought to the impoverished circumstances and burdens people around the world are facing right now and were facing even before Coronavirus struck.

Perhaps working for an international relief and development charity, has helped me to see our situation in the UK in a different light. Every day I am reminded of how privileged we are as a nation. When you become more aware of the hardship and deprivation that thousands, even millions, of people in other countries must endure it is heart-breaking. Forget about first world problems like running out of pasta, there are families who don’t even have a single grain of rice to grow or cook. Charities, exist to help men, women and children not only in a time of crisis, but in everyday life. 2020 has been a tough year for all of us and although we have the hope that the next Spring will bring with it some relief, for many the harshness will continue. So, may I suggest that we ease up on our own self-pity and think about those whose needs last a lifetime.

Please do not take up Elf’s suggestion and sing, for that would surely bring a swift end to our Christmas freedom, but please do something much more loving and tangible by supporting local or international charities and make a difference to someone’s life. That, surely, is how to spread long-lasting Christmas cheer and how to end 2020 with a bang.

Fiona Millar

Fiona Millar

DID AMERICA’S WOMEN COUNT IN THE US ELECTION?

By Pauline Lewis

Legal challenges aside, Joe Biden has clinched it for the Democrats and Donald Trump has been defeated.

The feud between the two contenders was highly publicised and often highly contentious, dominating the discourse between a highly divided American electorate. It was, therefore, easy to overlook the important historic milestone that this election has ushered in; Kamala Harris, Joe Biden’s running mate, has become the first woman in US history to become Vice-President. 

This is no mean feat. Hilary Clinton is probably the highest-ranking US female politician to date, having served as both First Lady to Bill Clinton, and then as US Secretary of State under the Obama administration. Previously, only Geraldine Ferraro had managed to reach these heights after becoming the running mate to Walter Mondale for the Democrats during the 1984 election. When she is sworn in at the January inauguration, Kamala will have surpassed both. 

The first female US Vice-President is milestone enough to write about, but the beautiful reality that accompanies this milestone is that Kamala Harris is a woman of colour whose cultural background reads like a cultural diversity dream.  Kamala’s late mother was from Tamil Nadu, a southern state in India, whilst her father is from Jamaica.  She has kept ties with her family in India since childhood and experienced racism as child growing up in the US, with children being told not to play with her simply because she was ‘black’. This cultural background brings many ‘firsts’ with it, as it gives her the simultaneous status of being the first African-American, first Asian-American, and first Caribbean-American to hold the position of Vice-President. Celebrations have already begun taking place in her maternal grandfather’s village of Thulasendrapuram in India.  

But there have been other significant gains for women in this election too. Candidates for Congress appear on the same ballot as the Presidential nominees, and this election has seen the record number of 318 women running for a seat in Congress, exceeding almost 50% of all the combined nominees. In addition to this, 117 of these women also happen to be women of colour. Regardless of the final result, this record number of women standing should be seen as a success in itself.   

This increase in numbers has improved the overall percentage of seats held by women in the US, which went up from 23.7% in the last election to 25.2% in 2020. Not all who stood won, but the increase has again led to several firsts.

Cynthia Lummis will be the first ever woman that the US state of Wyoming has sent to the Senate, whilst Cori Bush becomes the first Black member of Congress from Missouri.

Similarly, as Marilyn Strickland becomes the first Black woman to be sent to Congress by Washington state, New Mexico has become the first US state in history to simultaneously send three women of colour to represent the state in Congress. 

There is no question that there is a lot to celebrate here, but we should never forget the road that has been navigated to get to this point; a road where once there were no women in politics at all, where women were not entitled to vote, and where Black people had no vote at all. As Marilyn Strickland says, “It is exciting to see so many women of colour step up. I think the more that we see folks running for office, the more that we see people holding office, the more encouraged people are.”  The 2020 US Election should be testament to this.

Pauline Lewis

Pauline Lewis

IS EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE STILL IN FASHION?

By Selina Seesunkur

‘Treat others how you want to be treated’ is an age-old concept. In fact, you will find a similar concept in the Bible which says, ‘Therefore whatever you desire for men to do to you, you shall also do to them; for this is the law and the prophets.’ But how literally do we take this, or has this become a forgotten concept? The Bible, and society in general I would like to think, encourages kindness. If someone harms you, you really should not look to harm them back. However, to be less literal, isn’t it easier to be nice to people who are nice to you, or who you see as a familiar friend?

I am one of those people who respond immediately to a text or email. This is largely because if I do not do it there and then, chances are I will forget. My friends are exactly the same. I found it interesting that some people respond a few days or even weeks later, and wondered how they even remember to flip back and respond? So I tried it out myself. I tried it because I was trying to find new ways of prioritising, but the most interesting and unexpected thing happened. The very same people who took longer to reply, took exception when I did not respond fast enough or as quickly as they had been used to. One person even sent me a long text, which in essence asked if I was annoyed with them. “Nope”, I replied “I was just prioritising!”

I have seen people speak to others like absolute garbage, only to later command respect from the very same person they themselves disrespected. It has even happened to me. Clearly that person has no self-awareness, or perhaps they have but are too arrogant to care, which says more about them than it does of me.

Do you ever get the sense that you are always the one calling your friends, but they never or rarely call you? Do they just not bother because they know you will eventually call them, or because they are simply not as good at time management as you? Sometimes it hurts, doesn’t it! These are just a few modern day examples of issues we face in everyday modern life.

Emotional Intelligence is about being self-aware, and adaptable to external influences. It is also about the ability to recognise behaviours in others and tailor your approach accordingly. There is a lot to be said about treating others in the way you want to be treated, but there is also a lot to be said about breaking the chain and being the bigger person. Covid has given us all an opportunity to hit the reset button, but it is amazing how quickly people fall back into old habits. Make it a personal goal to not be one of those people. By taking the time to be more mindful towards others, you may just experience a more positive outcome. And if you do not, then that’s on them, not you.

Emotional Intelligence is very much in fashion, so do not live in the mercy of another person, nurture and manage your relationships intelligently.

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