Christmas: What is the reality?

Hi Loveys,

 

Todays post is food for thought, its about those that aren't as fortunate as many at Christmas, most of us think all children are having fun on Christmas morning, but look round your town, village or city and you will be shocked to know that behind a door could be a childs worst nightmare, for some children Christmas is the worst time of year.

 

Some children will experience joy and love, where they get to open presents on Christmas morning seeing family look on at them with smiles and laughter. But the realisation for many is quite the opposite, violence, alcohol, no presents, no tree, or the decoration and presents are destroyed, no food or warmth, the list goes on. These are the children I wish I could treat to a Christmas that would make them happy, where they get to see what Christmas can be like. I am not saying that Christmas is a day of material items, I am saying its a time for a child to feel magic, to feel love and warmth, where they can have a special day with family or friends that love them, where they can have a time to play and laugh.

 

Many charities do provide support for children and families, but many slip through the net, its so sad to think children around the world are left to endure upset and pain all year round, don't think this is different for Christmas day. So look in your local council to see what charities support children, families and the homeless over this period and get involved.

 

I also worry about the homeless, without food and warmth, we easily forget about the reality of Christmas that it isn't a "happy" time for everyone, that many suffer in silence and have to deal with loneliness and sadness. What can we do? We can give to charities, give to your local food bank who can give Christmas hampers, volunteer at your local hostel and homeless soup run. We need to open our eyes to what is truly happening around us, that people are suffering. The saying "charity starts at home" is so true, we need to support those closer to home because the world isn't as rosy as we may think, children and families in poverty and abuse is a daily occurrence for thousands around the UK. Here is a shocking statistic that was published from last Christmas in one county alone.

 

 On an average day over a year the police within Avon and Somerset were notified of approximately 1400 incidents of which 14 were domestic abuse related. Over the Christmas period last year around 914 incidents were notified per day, of which 28 related to domestic abuse and over the New Year period, there were about 1295 incidents per day, of which 50 were DV (domestic violence) related.

 

These are figures that may shock you, we need to realise that this is only one county, so how many incidents are happening in other counties? and the main question I want to know the answer to is how many are not reported to the police?

 

A x