Gardening
in Panama - Articles
by Donna - The Visitor:
December 25, 2009
Christmas 2009
By Donna Dawson
Tom and I are celebrating our fourth
Christmas in Panama. Our first Christmas was
spent by ourselves as we didn’t know anyone
yet. Out to the store we went to pick up our
tree - a balsam fir - and because it was so
sticky with sap I would not put my cherished
teddy bears on it – bears that I had packed
in my checked luggage for the long flight
from Canada. For our second Christmas we
invited our neighbours over for Christmas
dinner. Little did we know that for most
Panamanians, Christmas dinner is on
Christmas Eve, then going to Church
afterwards. Our neighbours showed up at the
door Christmas Eve and we stood staring at
one another…a lesson learned in a new
country, where traditions are different than
what we were used to.
The third Christmas we finally got it
together and had them over on Christmas Day
for dinner, but still no teddy bears up on
the tree because of the sap. This year, we
have an artificial tree and now after hiding
in seclusion, my teddy bears are sitting on
the branches where they should be, and all
their sweet faces tell a story of finding a
new home , a place to belong. Toms soldiers
that he has collected over all these years
are now happy to have their friends back.
I say this because many
expats are here for the first time and
it is a bit different. Christmas trees
are all gone two weeks before Christmas,
there is no bread in the stores – it is
all now the Christmas braids and rum
punch. But the one thing that remains
are friends, wherever you live. As we
get together with friends, both old and
new we are reminded that is does not
matter where you live, if you are
willing to enjoy the new traditions, you
are going to enjoy your new life.
