Impending End of Year 2023

This year, we decided to open our home for a Christmas Pot Bless Lunch Celebration for our CG on 15 December 2023. Quite remarkably, we had a similar event at our home four years ago in December 2019 (Read here). In my blog written soon after that event, I concluded with the hope that 2020 would be another great year!

2020 turned out to be a year way beyond the expectation of all people around the world. Almost immediately after our 2019 year end Pot Bless gathering, Covid 19 virus struck. Country after country started lock down to contain the spread of this global pandemic.  Travels within country and cross border were suspended. Schools, colleges, universities and work places were closed. Church services and gatherings in religious premises were too all suspended. For the first time, we began working online, study online, meeting online, worship online..... Traditional ways of doing things gave way to new ways of doing things!

Once Covid was contained and when the pandemic was slowly being accepted as being endemic, physical meetings and gatherings resumed. Our CG switched the regular meetings from home gathering to meeting in the Church premise (Kyrugma House). Our recent Pot Bless Lunch was the very first gathering in home.

Nineteen people came for the gathering. Of the nineteen, seventeen attended the 2019 get-together while two were first timers.

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Our CG leader is a very thoughtful person. He sprung another surprise after the meal. He unwrapped a package and presented a birthday cake to celebrate the birthdays of "boys" and "girls" born in the months of September to December. He gave a similar treat earlier on 18 August 2023 soon after our CG morning walk in Taman Ujana Rimba Tropika to the members born in the month of August (Read here).

Members of this CG are all seniors in their late sixties, seventies and eighties. All have contributed their part in raising their families and preparing the next generation to face life challenges.

We all know the inevitability of lives - deterioration in hearing, eye sight and memory and the ultimate end of life. A topic that frequently pops up these days is - "Have you booked your final resting place?" Notwithstanding this, we would make all attempt to liven the remaining time:  keeping good health, fostering emotional support through regular communication, companionship and yamcha sessions!