Merry Christmas

If you're unsure of who to gift on Christmas, these are the ones

Give, and you'll receive. For then, someone different, someone with more than you own, will come and share theirs with you. Give to whoever you want. But in doing this, do not turn your back on these kind people bearing the weight of modern life.

The everyday people

The everyday people have no known hyped titles, yes. Their nature of work doesn’t arrive with bragging rights like it does with fancy positions. But what I cherish most about them; they go to where they’re needed. They go to where they provide value. They don’t feel productive like most corporate jobs, they are productive. A fixed bulb here. Offloaded luggages there. Sealed leaking roofs. Repaired phone. These, while seeming miniscule, moves the needle and if it better adds even little pennies into their thin pockets, is all they care. Their efforts don’t flood media front pages like it does everyday for lawyers, doctors, politicians yet they pull the strings of the country by unimaginable inches.

The boda boda riders snaking through the treacherous city, loaders and offloaders relieving us from the burden of our luggage, drivers keeping the key parts of the economy moving, the plumbers connecting us with the most basic thing, watchmen breezing through the chilly night to keep us safe, carpenters cozying up our living rooms, electricians lighting the darkest nights, women supplying us groceries from their roadside makeshifts, car wash attendants and mama fua (women, mostly laundrying for a survivable fee) tidying up our own stuff etc.

Among the notable markers of the everyday people I have observed is their work. They do not necessarily aim to work to build their own empire, become the next Zuckerbergs, hawk their way to mars like Elon or eye the Forbe list. They work to make a living, to have a family with tranquility, or to atleast stride into another year with less pain. Their work (often without their knowledge) is so central to the survival (and thriving) of the community.

And if there is a prize to be contested, then, it’s them and theirs to lose. But we haven’t acknowledged them enough. We haven’t glamorized their work enough like we do with other jobs. Their presence fizzles out as soon as they are unfunctional. But their absence cripples, only then, when we can't do what they do. Their errands, literally looks so unimpressive, even microscopic, almost seeming insignificant, but when you zoom out, you see they make up the atomic levers of so many moving parts in any functional society.

But among the definers I cherish most about them, they are resilient. Resilient enough to circumvent traps of their survival, to reside in shanty houses and yet afford to smile, to wake up each day with no safety nets but still manage to cushion themselves from the unforeseens, to wade off illnesses draining their time, money, and peace, to put up with political shifts and wars they didn’t start. Over and over again, they have displayed the propensity to withstand the turmoils of their everyday life happenings often without succumbing to the scars of their battles and still emerge intact mentally.

While the machinery of the world lingers on the performance-based affection, the ordinary gloss over simple things enriching who we’re. A zesty meal they can’t stop talking about, a time with loved ones they can’t stop reliving, hobbies they can’t stop attending (often in large numbers). They do what the world has long forgotten we are here for.

As you ring your Christmas bells and clock out the worn-out year, it may make sense that you spice up your festivity to align with who you're. It can be a shared meal, a heartfelt acknowledgement of their efforts, or a visit to the orphanage. Choose what you believe in and dedicate your whole self to it. Your gift may not be colossal or appear even insignificant, but what you give away is what stays in you.

Photo by Timur Weber on Pexel