However, the "fun" doesn't end at Christmas. Boxing Day is one of the busiest (if not the busiest) day in the shopping calendar, as customers descend on the various shopping malls and factory outlets to take advantage of the end-of-year sales. I don't know what made me write down "All Day" on the availability roster, but luckily I've been spared the pain and am only working a normal recovery shift.
The following day, I'm planning to go to the Melbourne Cricket Ground to watch Day Two of the Boxing Day Test match between Australia and England. This Ashes series so far has been a topsy-turvy affair. After a draw in the first game at Brisbane (a tale of two extremes which featured Australia's Peter Siddle taking a hat-trick and then England scoring a ridiculous 517 for the loss of ONE wicket (!) in its second innings) and a thrashing by the Poms in Adelaide by an innings (with Kevin Pietersen scoring a majestic 227), the Aussies seized back the momentum in Perth thanks to three men - Mitch Johnson, Mike Hussey and Ryan Harris, to have the series level at 1-1. With two test matches to go, the following outcomes are now possible:
- Australia wins the last two matches and the series 3-1, hence reclaiming the Ashes.
- Australia wins one match and draws / ties the other to win the series 2-1, reclaiming the Ashes.
- England only has to win one of the next two matches to retain the Ashes.
- If the last two matches result in draws or ties, England retains the Ashes.
So from these calculations one can conclude that Australia has more incentive to p
lay aggressive cricket. I'm not saying that England can afford to go slow. The Poms have brought out a team that appears stronger than most of their previous touring squads combined (on paper at least), and will look to bounce back quickly from the heavy defeat in Perth. This struggle to gain the upper hand has increased expectation that the Boxing Day Test - one of the biggest events in Melbourne's sporting calendar alongside the Grand Final and the Melbourne Cup - will be one to remember. I think Day 1 tickets are already sold out, but I don't mind because I prefer to go when there aren't so many people and the focus is more on the cricket.Anyway, back to the Christmas theme. On Saturday, a group of us from church went around to three aged-care homes to sing some carols and spread some Christmas cheer. It was a wonderful experience as God blessed the singing and the interaction we had with the elderly residents. Now I will share some Christmas cheer with you through some wonderful renditions of three carols I found whilst browsing around on Youtube.
The first clip is a German carol called Vom Himmel hoch da komm' ich her (From highest Heaven to Earth I come). Martin Luther originally wrote this carol for his son, and it has since become one of the most popular carols in the German Christmas repertoire. I only first heard this carol a few weeks ago, but it's now become one of my favourites. If you know Luther's hymn "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God", you will doubtless recognize some of the melody in this carol.
The next two clips are beautiful renditions of well-known carols sung in Swedish. The first one is "O Holy Night", which comes from France but translates very well into Swedish (O Helga Natt), and is sung here by Sweden's most famous operatic tenor Jussi Björling. The second one, "Silent Night" (Stilla Natt in Swedish) is originally a German carol but I have yet to find a version better than the one sung by Norway's angelic soprano Sissel Kyrkjebø.
I hope you enjoy these clips as much as I have. To all my friends and family around the world, I wish you Merry Christmas / Frohe Weihnachten / Geseënde Kersfees / Buon Natale / Feliz Navidad / 聖誕快樂 / Boas Festas / Joyeux Noël / God Jul / Wesółych Świąt / С Рождеством Христовым and apologies to the many other languages which I've missed.
Cheers and God bless
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