WIDER COMMUNITY BRINGS JOY TO THE CAROLS

I HAD a stroke last year and now have limited vision and cognitive capacity.

As a result I can no longer drive or work, so my wife and I now rely on family and friends for many day-today tasks.

Last week our neighbours invited us to join them at Carols on the lawn at St Albans Church in Hamlyn Heights. What a wonderful time we had.

It started with a free sausage sizzle on the front lawn and was followed by the crowd singing well-known Christmas carols, and we were then entertained by the Karen Youth Choir. This group are now well represented in Geelong.

A young father I spoke to explained that armed men came to his village and threatened that if they were still there in a week that he and his family would be killed.

Naturally they immediately fled with very little and they are most grateful that they have been able to resettle in the safety and security of Australia.

The youth beautifully sang several carols with great enthusiasm and received an appreciative round of applause.

After several more carols, the vicar humorously retold the Christmas story using a pillow as his only prop. This was interpreted into Arabic and Persian as there were more than 30 refugees present from Iraq and Afghanistan.

To me, the laughter, smiles and attempts at communicating with people from different parts of the world was truly symbolic of the true meanings of Christmas — peace, unity, fun and the coming of Christ into the world as a child. Well done St Albans Anglican Church. Bill Field, East Geelong