#filmgang

26th.

4 • Festive Blues •

After being on the road for 10 months I contracted a case of the blues. Travelling had began to grind me down and I had a feeling I knew why.

It was December. Now it may not have felt much like it with the soaring tropical heat and the coconut trees swaying by the ocean. But nevertheless I could feel something was amiss. I was due to spend Christmas away from my family.

It wasn’t all bad thought as a dear friend of mine would soon be flying in to Brazil and had invited me to spend some of the festive period with him and his family in Rio.

I walked around Cartagena thinking about what Christmas meant to me and what it was that I missed so dearly.

I thought about the meal. For most people it’s the highlight of the day. To gather as one and break bread rings true to our very core. But over time in the west it has become something rather rare and I had felt a sense of missing out.

After a large meal we would have the ritual walk in the park near our house. And at some point in the day the inevitable feeling of another year passing would sink in.

I feeling that is rather sad, but a sadness mixed in with the joy of being able to experience the moment. Similar to a child setting off on their first day of school or that of saying goodbye to your first car for a newer and better model.