Al's blog: bits & pieces from afar: Tis the merry season!

It is that time of the year when multi-coloured string lights hang on shop windows, and on live trees on streets, and even on house, bars, or café patios. If you live in the city or large town, chances are that this time of year is when department stores and large supermarket chains stream classic Boney M "season songs" and many more from overhead speaker systems.

This is the season for Christmas! Ah Christmas - the time when Christians and non-Christians alike take some time off from their hectic lives to make merry. The time when people gather as families or with loved ones to share sheer joy.

Most importantly this is the time when Santa Clause (Father Christmas) rides his sleigh into town (surprisingly in the still of the night) bearing gift items on children's wishlists - but only for boys and girls who have been good. So I was told as a kid.

On cue, this time of year my taste buds yearn for something local. By this I mean local menus, from foods such as njiki-njiki (fresh sesame source), osobi, dry meat in idi (sesame paste) and porridge seasoned with iti (tamarind fruits) to local brew (kpete). I guess it's a Pavlovian effect.

So this is the time when I get to retreat away from the glaring lights of the city. I like the quiet and tranquility of the "home" life - my ancestral or tribal place - the place I truly call home! I often enjoy listening to the history lesson from my elders on our family's lineage or on our numerous family relations. Sometimes I'm told stories about myself when I was a child, things which I don't remember from way back then. Most times they sound like music to my ears. Such tales are often told after sunset. Other times I use the "free" time to reflect on how the year has been for me, and how I can improve as a person so as to make myself and all the people who are dear to me better.

In short, I love this time of year and always look forward to it.

Some images from an earlier Christmas.