On Christmas Eve, this church had a special service with speaking, singing, and dancing (little girls in costumes). Imagine my surprise though, when the person who greeted me outside the church was no other than...
...uh, Santa Claus. I never saw a curly mustache like this before. It curled like a ringlet. Odder still, Santa was female. At least she padded the costume, because there is no way that in real life she is as puffy as she looks in the photo. She passed out candy, welcomed visitors, and said "Merry Christmas." Odd, yes, but in a country that has no idea of what Christmas is all about (except Christians like her), we do not criticize any attempts at yuletide merriment.
Inside, the true meaning of the season took front and center stage. (They were just having fun with Santa. Despite how it might look to you, there is no confusion among these people about Christ being the center of Christmas.)Unlike the choir in Taiwan, this choir would not be asked to sing in a shopping mall. That pretty much would not happen here. Nope, not in this country.
There were dozens of policemen around outside. Christmas Eve draws big crowds at churches, so presumably they were there for crowd control. That, and to scare away anyone who might lose their jobs if discovered in a church.
The good news is that some of the policemen, young men, were inside the church listening to other young people sing Christmas carols and tell the story of Jesus. Policemen around here don't often get to go to church, so I think it is great a few of them got to hear the story last night!
The Lovely Meems
I bought Mimi a soft pink cubicle last year, a plush dog house. She totally ignored it for at least 14 months. I was thinking about giving it away. But recently Mimi rediscovered it and is now inseparable from it. Except when she's outside, which brings us to the next photo.
Mimi wears her bright, cheerful sweater on Christmas Day. She also sleeps in sweaters at night when it is below freezing.
Mimi: "Hey Master, I think there's something in this bamboo grove. A cat probably. Can we go check it out? C'mon, pulleeeeze?!"Me: Will you please turn around Meems so I can get a picture of your face?
Mimi: No. Cat! Let's go!
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