It’s that time of the year

> December is full of the promise of Christmas and merrymaking but it also comes with the pain of remembering the deep loss of a loved one

is usually associated with Christmas, with many shopping malls decked in many creative attractions. Some even can recreate a winter wonderland in our hot tropical weather, with ‘snowflakes’ falling.

But this year, the malls have been a little slow in dolling themselves up for Christmas. Maybe it’s the state of the economy.

Otherwise, during good times, some malls would put up Christmas decorations even as early as late October, giving Christmas shopping campaigns a 60-day head start.

But such enthusiasm sometimes gets sections of our population worked up, especially when an earlier religious or cultural festival hasn’t even taken place yet.

When I was little, I often wondered whether there was really a Santa Claus. This was because I had only ever seen pictures of this rotund and bubbly bearded man in Christmas cards.

One day, I got the answer: I saw Santa arriving in a helicopter, and hopping on to a trishaw for a children’s party organised by a major recreation club in Penang!

This was reinforced by a song called I Saw Mummy Kissing Santa Claus.

In 2004, I stumbled upon a Christmas resort bedecked with many Christmassy decorations near Stockholm in Sweden. Many things often seen on a Christmas card were there, including Father Christmas!

So being the inquisitive person that I am, I asked what does Father Christmas do at the resort?

He said he kept little boys and girls who sat on his lap happy by agreeing to accept their requests for Christmas presents.

Whether he fulfilled them was another matter, but I gathered he wouldn’t have too many problems if the requests were for stuffed toys or tiny machines like toy fire engines or racing cars.

Then Mr Santa Claus told me that he had to go out of the resort to attend to an errand. Oops!

I asked who was going to attend to the children who came by the resort.

He said they would have to make do without him for the time being.

I offered to stand in for him. I said my tummy could fit into his clothes. I could also speak English, be funny, hold the kids on my lap and shout: “Ho! Ho! Ho!”

But Mr Santa shook his head and said: “No! No! No!”

Maybe he was afraid that I could out-perform him? Ho! Ho! Ho!

Jeff Yong, after making his mark in the twisty maze of mainstream journalism, has finally decided to enjoy what he does best – observing the unusual and recounting the gleeful. He can be contacted at lifestyle.borak@gmail. com.