sgtdub

24 December 2006, Christmas Eve.
Christmas is one of my most favorite times of the year. I have had reason to not be fond of it at all, and could even bare an excuse to avoid it all together. "God is good, all the time" as Ben would say at his blog site. My mother passed away on Christmas Eve 14 years ago. God is good. God replaced that lost with the birth of my daughter, Miss Dub, who was born on November 4th, just in the nick of time for the holiday season. So I got a reason to be thankful, to feel blessed, and to enjoy Christmas as much as I always have. On Christmas Eve around 1800 - 1830 hrs, I stop what I'm doing and talk to my mom, just for a few moments. Then I go back to celebrating the meaning of Christmas, the Birth of Christ, my family, my friends and of course, wait eagerly for Christmas morning to see what Santa brought me.
Now with that out of the way, As I logged on tonight, I found one of those stories that our fine media slips up every once and a while and publishes. This one I found in Yahoo News. I won't get on the soap box tonight, but this story brings hope to all here in Afghanistan, and it helps me realize even more how much more that us as a Nation, as a world, are bringing freedom and hope to this country. For those of you who wanted to see what Al Franken had in store for me, you'll have to wait one more day. This story should be the headlines all over the world. It's simple, but it speaks so loudly to me.

By RAHIM FAIEZ, Associated Press Writer
KABUL, Afghanistan - In devoutly Muslim Afghanistan, Christmas is like any other day — people go to work, there are no blinking lights lining the streets and pine trees remain unadorned — except on Flower Street, where local tree vendors are making an extra buck from the foreigners' holiday.
Located in the heart of Kabul, Flower Street is different at Christmas from any other time of year, transformed into a festive place full of trees decked with multicolored tinsel garlands and lights.
"After the Taliban, we started to make Christmas trees because lots of foreigners are around, and they are asking for them," said Eidy Mohammad as he decorated a tree at his shop, the Morsal Flower Store. "Business is growing — we had only the wedding season before, but now we have Christmas as well."
Unlike many non-Christian countries in Asia, Afghanistan does not recognize or celebrate Christmas. But thousands of foreigners who live in Kabul working with the United Nations, non-governmental organizations or international military forces, celebrate the holiday quietly in restaurants and behind military barracks.
Many shop at Flower Street for their holiday trees.
"Christmas is a good season for flower stores in Kabul," Mohammad said, adding that during the Taliban's rule, nobody was allowed to make Christmas trees in Kabul.
He has sold about a dozen Christmas trees, earning anywhere from US$20 to US$200 — a hefty sum for Afghans, many of whom make only about US$50 a month. The trees are from across Afghanistan and are adorned with Chinese-made artificial materials.
"I was amused when I saw trees with lights," said 29-year-old Abdul Qader. He thought the lit-up trees were a new fad in Afghan home deco, but he later found out they were for Christmas.
"They looked beautiful to me," he said with a smile.
Had this story gotten out earlier, I would have attempted to go and take pictures and shop there. I have been on flower street before, walking into the flower shops, the corner stores. It is a marvel unto itself in such a war-torn country. May they continue in their freedoms.
Be safe and remember to give extra kisses and hugs to your loved ones. Have a Merry Christmas. Did I mention that I'm having a white Christmas this year, it started snowing today at about 2 p.m. It's beautiful.