As Barbadians celebrate the Yuletide season, they are being reminded to be thankful for the small things in life, as well as all that the country has been able to achieve so far despite the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition, Prime Minister Mia Mottley is calling on residents to follow the COVID-19 protocols and be cautious as they take part in festivities.
In her Christmas Day message, Mottley warned that “failure to do the right things will leave us facing consequences that can be dire at every level – individually, within our family and, of course, nationally”.
Mottley said she and her administration were thankful for residents who were adhering to the various COVID-19 protocols and for those in the public and private sector who played their part over the past year to ensure that commerce and other activities were sustained.
Pointing to Barbados becoming a republic last month, Mottley said Barbadians should now work to reinforce the values and principles “which we hold dear and on which this nation was founded”.
“We must see each other and look out for each other. We must listen to each other and care for each other. We must recognise that we will have different perspectives in the society but we must always seek to find the common ground to advance as a people and as a nation. And we must remain, thereafter, committed to resolving those things upon which there can be no clearly agreed common ground but for which there must still be progress,” she said.
Pledging that she was determined to help make Barbados world class by 2027, the Prime Minister said that as we enter 2022 “we will start the conversation among ourselves as to who we are and how best we can become even more confident and more committed to being the best person that each of us can be; or how we shall order our constitutional arrangements to better improve the quality of our governance and to promote active citizenship rather than simply focusing on the role of our government or on peoples’ rights alone”.
“We will focus on making our people better prepared, more productive and more empathetic, because it is all we have to rely on – our people, you, me, all of us. And, in all that we do, we must hold fast to our faith, our values and our principles,” she added.
Mottley expressed optimism that long-stay tourist arrivals were almost back to pre-COVID levels this month, adding that cruise arrivals were encouraging and the economy was “clearly on the uptick” while acknowledging that there were still some clouds of uncertainty.
In his Christmas message, Opposition Leader Bishop Joseph Atherley called for focus to be placed on “the small things in life” as he urged residents to look out for children and the less fortunate.
He said too often people overlook “the seeming small things” including “a hand of help that is there in our time of need; a voice of comfort or counsel that speaks to us in our times of challenge or even confusion; an offered smile that rekindles our spirits during our frequent episodes of darkness, sometimes even dense darkness; the loyalty of friends; the love of family; a small raise; a little advancement in life; a small opportunity, unexpected and perhaps even undeserved”.
He reminded residents they had a duty of care to nurture children and “to be mindful of him to whom we generally refer as the small man, for whom we reserve and to whom we allocate that perpetual small space on the canvass of life”.
“We have a duty of care to that single mother who is losing the battle to keep body and soul together while raising children in the face of either the frivolous or forced absence of fathers. We have a duty of care to the thousands of under-employed, especially our females, who labour largely for the gain of others and in situations of various types of exploitation.
“We have a duty of care to the small multitudes cramped in small spaces they must call homes, makeshift chattel devoid of the conspicuous utility and amenity associated with the ‘other Barbados’. We have a duty of care to the small entrepreneur whose self-efforts do not sufficiently attract the helping hand of the state or catch the eye of its privilege,” he added.
Atherley also urged Barbadians to be cognizant of “the potential of small things to make a difference” as they celebrate this Christmas season.
“Small space is no limitation or constraint to big ambition or great aspirations or gigantic achievement. Ask a Gary Sobers, a Robyn Fenty, a Suki King. Small nations can have and must have a big voice in today’s global theatre. That voice must be loud on climate change, an existential threat reality which portends dark days for our children,” he said.
“That voice must be loud on fair financing which does not take account of resource capacity and vulnerability profile. That voice must be loud on trade inequities and sustainable development impediments which consolidate capital wealth, industrial and technological advancement, and afford market advantage in a context of skewed growth.”
The sole opposition parliamentarian also called on Barbadians to “not depart from our traditional values and moorings rooted historically in the offerings of the home, the school and the church”.
marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb
