This is the time of year when in mellowness and cheer, I must send Christmas wishes to these folks on Goanet in no particular order. To Herman and his team for making it work well. To George and Mervyn for collecting money to do good. To all those who helped them do it. To Filomena Giese of Goa Sudharop and other orgs like hers. To Selma who has been my cyberspace friend for many years. To Francis, Bosco, Silviano, Ben, Kevin, Olinda, Joe Lobo for their camaraderie. To Gabe, Cornel and Santosh who I would be happy to meet when they visit Toronto. To Joegoauk who keeps us abreast. To Senhor Catao and those who told us of eminent Goans. To Frederick and the UK Eddie for their cyberspace initiatives. To Valmiki and Rene for their encouragement. To Cecil for his independence and enterprise. To Radha, Vidhya, Sachin for their posts. To Aires, Minguel and Anthony for their activism. To Philip Thomas for his exquisite specialities. To Gilbert for his Goencarponn. To Dominic for his antique shelves. To Helga and Sonia for their different outlooks. To Afra, Isabella, Mathilda for being roses among thorns. To Pravin for regular motivation. To Cip for his plaintive sarcasm. To Mario for the times he is lucid. To Sunith and Aristo for opposing my views with enthusiasm. To Albert Desouza for being the salt of the earth. To Bernard Ole Xac for his crazy communications. To Allfred for rediscovering our family roots. To the joy of writing to Eric and Stanley contacted after nearly 40 years. To Jose for being a Goan outpost in the Caribbean. To Carmo for keeping me in stiches. To Mervyn Maciel a Goan icon. To Nicholas, the Saudi Eddie and lots of folks who write when they feel the need for it To all other writers I have not named and the readers who have put up with my frequent nonsense.
"A single mother of four living in Africa looks up at the same stars and moon that shine down on an elderly Frenchman in Paris. A Tibetan monk living in India, a newborn infant in China, and a young couple saying their marriage vows in Indiana all breathe the same air, by the same process. We have all been hurt and we have all cried. Each one of us knows how it feels to love someone dearly. No matter what our political views are, we all love to laugh. Regardless of how much or how little money we have, our hearts pump blood through our bodies in the same way. With all this in common, it is clear we are each individual members of the same family. We are human and we must treat people for what they are-family." Roland
