Lessons shortly forgotten.

I was amazed to find this and thought
it would be a good read:
Zarina



Herbert Lewis, Guest Columnist of the Jamaican Gleaner
BY OUR actions it is clear that, and indeed a pity, so many of
us forget or just do not recognize that Jesus is the real reason
for the joy and glad tidings of the Christmas holiday season.
Christmas is a magical time of the year when people of all
ages and background should put aside their differences
and be reminded of the things which truly count:
­ the joy of giving, the gleam in the young child's eye,
and the sound of voices raised in song.
During this magical season, many go to great extreme to
spend with total abandonment and with little or no concern
for the days and weeks after the season is over.
In fact, many cannot help themselves because some of
the advertisements are so powerful that some consumers
are convinced that if they don't have this or that item they
are not living. And, in fact, some consumers will argue that
if such and such a person can own a certain item,
they should own one too.
TAKING ADVANTAGE
We lament on a daily basis about the state of our education
and the incidence of literacy but one cannot help thinking
that advantage is being taken of some of these people
by inducing them to own what they cannot afford.
As business people, it is not unreasonable to expect
that in advertising our goods and services we take into
account the vulnerability of the illiterate and pitch our
advertisements in a way to offer them some level of
protection against themselves.
After the holidays many, after stretching themselves to get
what they cannot afford and, in a lot of cases, what they do
not really need, will be faced with school fees, a new pair
of shoes, money for the rent or mortgage, lunch money
or the furniture bill.
The situation might even be more complicated if the job
is no longer there after the holidays.
Indeed, mid-January to February, by contrast, is a
magical time of year when people forget all about the joy
of giving, the gleam in a young child's eye and all the
other happy experiences.
This leads to mid-to late February when people
everywhere feel overpowering, soul-crushing emotional
pain, causing them to hate co-workers, their loved
ones and themselves.
Evidence of this phenomenon can be found in many
countries including ours, with Christmas miracles of
universal benevolence and spiritual enlistment
degenerating into mid-January everyday banalities
and neglect.
Corporations that donated generously to the homeless
and various charities mere weeks before will resume
their usual cutthroat, profit-driven practices.
Children who learned the important lesson that it is
better to give than receive will be refusing to share
their expensive new toy with less fortunate playmates,
gloating over their possessions and berating other
children for being poor.
And the many career-focused dads, who made a
major breakthrough during the holiday season,
vowing to spend quality with their wives and children,
will systematically unlearn this realization of what truly
matters and return to their dysfunctional workaholic
patterns.
ACHIEVABLE RESOLUTIONS
In the New Year, we all make resolutions, many of which
we never accomplish. How about some practical
and achievable ones such as:
Service with a smile ­Remember that service does
not mean servitude.
The customer is the one who contributes to existence of
the business and ultimately to provision of employment
for you.
Exhibit a good attitude ­a helpful approach to both
co-worker and to customers.
Be a good team player. Love your family,
your neighbor, and your co-worker ­
and try to love your job
(there are not many jobs available today).
Take care of the old; the dispossessed and the
homeless
there are extra blessings in this regard.
If we make the effort to do these simple but important
things, we will achieve much. Remember we cannot
legislate love, good attitude, quality service, but these are
the backbone of civility and decency. These are quality
on which any good society is built.
I hope you will agree with me that almost all Jamaicans,
regardless of religious beliefs or cultural backgrounds,
share the positive, soul-enriching sentiments
associated with the holiday season.
BEHAVING KINDLY
But it is only by contrasting our regular mean-spirited
shallowness the rest of the year which allows the spirit
of Christmas to move us so deeply, deluding the
populace into thinking their lives are actually beautiful.
If everybody behaved so kindly to one another all year
round, then what a wonderful world we would be
sharing with each other.
If you think about it, the11 and half months of cruelty,
selfishness and disrespect exhibited by nearly all
humanity could change if we reflected deeply and
recognized the fact that Jesus is really the reason
for the season.
May I wish for you all and for Jamaica a new year of
peace and genuine love for each other.
Herbert Lewis is an industrial relations specialist
and past president of Jamaica Employers Federation.