Greetings to all of you, relatives and valued friends,

It's been almost seven years here at Uncle Stuart's farm, with two substantial gardens, though only a few peas grew and blight troubled the squash, cucumbers and tomatoes but there was a good quantity of produce for me, son, landlord (his land and he tills), two churches and social agencies.

I'm trying to cut down on possessions, that spread out into the garage, shed and barn. I think that many seniors, having winnowed their possessions as they downsized from their traditional home, would prefer visits from friends or other services as gifts, rather than material things, at Christmas. Some friends say that they often read the obits - and it seems, they say, as though there are more of them. Laughing, I tell them to be glad that they can, 'cause one of these days they won't be - when it's their turn!

My car being 24 years old, over a quarter my age, my friend took a video of it to enter into a contest to find the most decrepit looking car, which would provide the owner with a $15,000. certificate on a new car ... but internet friends who saw it on YouTube said that, despite deterioration of age, mine looked too good to win: they were right, of course.

As I noted last year, having braked harder than usual approaching a signal light, blown a brake line, then lightly kissed another car, and having covered repair costs for both ... I suggest that occasionally you push brake pedal much harder than usual, for several seconds: better to blow a line next to your repair shop than like I did.

A highlight of my year was finding in September, after a CT scan of my lungs, that the clots have dissolved: doc says that I'm a poster boy for clot treatment. I'm pleased that I have no apparent reduction in what I am able to do.

Another highlight of my year was flying to Edmonton in early December to help sister-in-law celebrate her 80th birthday, which included visits with brother and wife, sister and nieces and nephew and friends from earlier years in Saskatchewan - a pleasurable time, renewing face-to-face connections with family and old friends.

I told her that, finding it hard to part with the "Did you remember my SENIOR'S DISCOUNT" hat that was part of the boodle when I celebrated my 80th a couple of years ago ... I figured that I might agree to lend it to her for a while.

This was the year for the reunion of former Korea missionaries in North Carolina, but with several friends now gone, and some others unable to travel, I decided not to go, which meant not visiting a niece's family in Georgia as formerly ... but their daughter is starting advanced education in Toronto, so we had a nice visit when they brought her up to begin school in the fall.

They couldn't index our private [church] pension this year, and it appears that it is underfunded. I think that we should receive the funds generated from our contributions, not expect current contributors to fund our pensions, whether public or private. As I wondered whether to offer a voluntary, temporary reduction, my landlord said that if I have surplus money that he could arrange an increase in my rent. When I replied this morning that when a guy has a mind like a steel trap, that if he were to run that idea past it, I expect that it would consider that to invest more than about 1.5 seconds in that idea would be something of a fruitless enterprise ... he laughed uproariously. I'm fortunate: he's a great guy!

Having cut down on giving gifts and sending many cards for some years, giving medical, social, educational, international and religious charities instead, that, plus some political contributions, using about 20% of my income, has recently reduced my income tax to 0. As I age, I find that I'm valuing my friends and relatives more - perhaps aided by having lost several - and am drawn to being in closer contact with them (and the cynical side of me wonders whether the lack of need for further charitable deductions might be a factor).

Christmas traditions are interesting: though it's said to be Christ's birthday ... we con-artist Christians, along with many others, have worked it so that we get the gifts! And while it used to be that the birthday party kid got the gifts ... now the stores and advertisers have convinced us that every attendee gets one! Helping train kids to feel entitled, to judge our value by our possessions - but poor training for westerners who need to get used to less luxurious living as many jobs get shipped to low-wage areas: levelled playing field - coming up!

I think that our grandkids should be angry with us: we've run up huge debts, wasted precious petroleum while causing global warming, not only fished out the seas but have polluted them seriously, and the air and land as well (says he, who lives within 3 km. of a "landfill"[read "garbage dump"] whose licence was expanded recently from 9 to 17 million tons ... then acquired by Toronto ... for $220 million).

May the joyous, wondrous message of Christmas gladden your heart and those of your loved ones and, if you honour that faith, encourage you to choose to pattern your life on the life and teachings of the one who grew from that babe.


As this year draws to a close, and as we consider our world, it seems to me that this old world is rather sick and needs our help to see a different vision of the way that we should care for it, in our communities, our nations and the world as a whole. An important task for all of us, whether we consider ourselves Christian or not.

While we speak of "peace", many say that unless we build roots of justice, a trunk of fairness, branches of compassion and leaves of love ... that to expect the fruit of peace to appear out of thin air ... is futile.

And may you have a happy, healthy, prosperous and fruitful New Year, as well.

Affectionately,

ole joyful

P.S. This was composed on Word and, with the assistance of a computer-literate library helper, dropped on to a nice letterhead that I'd found.

o j