At the end of a long day, Bambi will pause with a loving thought for a country she loves dearly. Yes, she means Armenia. Indeed, those who knew her as a child, or who regularly read this blog, may recall that her nickname is “Bambineh” :). It means “I am Bambi” in the beautiful Armenian language.
Bearing the above in mind, why is Bambi thinking of Armenia today? Well, thirty-five years ago (precisely on December 7, 1988), it was hit by a devastating earthquake, which killed between 25,000 and 50,000 people in addition to up to 130,000 who were injured (https://shorturl.at/hIMN5). Those of us old enough may recall the sad TV images about this natural tragedy. Thankfully, we can also remember Mr. Charles Aznavour’s fantastic French song, which helped raise much needed funds for the Armenian people.
To end this post in music, Bambi will start with Aznavour’s song. Selfishly, she will also spoil her own ears (and hopefully yours too :)) with an Armenian (+ French and English) love song, which she adores. May love and peace prevail in Armenia and everywhere.
Bambi is thinking of all her loved ones called Nicolas, Nkoula, Nicole, Sarah-Nicole, etc. Those on earth and those in heaven. She would like to offer them all a joyful kids’ song about the SWEET character of Saint Nicholas!
The above song is followed by another joyful kids’ song for Hannukah. May the beautiful lights of the menorah bring healing, along with love, to our deeply troubled world. Happy Hannukah to this blog’s readers who will soon celebrate this Jewish festival!
Both Mr. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Mr. Johnny Holiday died on December 5. The former in 1791 (at age 35; https://shorturl.at/qAMT8). The latter in 2017 (at age 74; https://shorturl.at/djt36). Thank goodness, they existed. long live their eternal talent.
Bambi will begin by thanking one of her readers from Québec for attracting her attention about a freaky story, which recently occured in Moncton: the lovely Jewish menorah of Hannukah, which had been a 20-year tradition at city hall is now bothering some to the extent that the Mayor of this city decided to ban the outside decoration this year. Guess why? The stated, yet still unclear, reason is that it is related to the war in the the Middle East (https://shorturl.at/itDQ0). Nonsense. What does the peaceful New Brunswick, and its lovely Moncton, have to do with the bloody, and far away, Middle East?
Bambi, and MANY old immigrants like her, left the Middle East, precisely to appreciate Canada’s tolerant society. We are blessed to be able to co-exist, learn to know each other, enjoy friendships, and for some even find romantic love.
In other terms, Bambi and MANY old immigrants like her, do not want the Middle East’s conflicts to follow us to North America (and by extension to any other Western and tolerant country). Stated differently, we do not want any beautiful, spiritual or just cultural symbol removed to please any intolerant person or ideology, regardless of its source. Indeed, this is secondary. What matters the most is to preserve our tolerance and whom we are as Canadians.
Those who may be perhaps disturbed by the traditional menorah of Moncton city hall must perhaps consider either re-locating or closing their eyes while passing by it during the holiday season. However, for God’s sake, keep the magic on with the lovely decorations of the holiday season, that is those of Hannukah and Christmas.
May the light of the menorah open the minds of some intolerant people and keep building bridges among fellow Atlantic Canadians, whether they are Jewish or not. The latter is secondary too. What matters is our shared humanity.This being said, now is the time for an inspiring French song, which is entitled “La tolérance” [Tolerance]. It is by Mr. Enrico Macias and performed here by a certain talented Mr. Pascal Leyman. Following it, you can find an English translation by Bambi (taken from an older post).
First, here are the lyrics in English, followed by the original French:
“Tolerance is proof of love and intelligence
Tolerance is respect for life in all countries
Tolerance is to have a lot of indulgence for your neighbour
Open your heart instead of clenching your fists
For no reason for nothing
All forgiven for the tears
Of a child or of a woman
We are never loved
By fear or by severity
Understanding the ideas of others
Without wanting to impose our own
It is in this world a virtue
That we lost
Tolerance is reasoning about the passions of difference
Tolerance means recognizing to everyone their divine rights
Tolerance is the last chance for today’s humans
If they don’t want to no longer live in freedom
in a few years
Despite the many disagreements that still exist between us
Everything can be discussed if we know how to forgive first
Whatever the naysayers of all stripes can write
Mourning the future, I still refuse
Tolerance will eventually win out over backbiting
And on that day, on earth
There won’t be happier than me”
Original French lyrics of Mr. Macias’ song:
« La tolérance, c’est une preuve d’amour et d’intelligence La tolérance, c’est le respect de la vie dans tous les pays La tolérance, c’est d’avoir pour son prochain beaucoup d’indulgence Ouvrir son cœur au lieu de fermer les poings Sans raison pour rien
Tout excusé devant les larmes D’un enfant ou bien d’une femme On est jamais aimé Par crainte ou par sévérité Comprendre les idées des autres Sans vouloir imposer les nôtres C’est dans ce monde une vertu
Que nous avons perdue
La tolérance, c’est raisonner les passions de la différence La tolérance, c’est reconnaitre à chacun tous ses droits divins La tolérance, c’est pour les hommes d’aujourd’hui la dernière chance S’ils ne veulent pas ne plus vivre en liberté dans quelques années
Malgré les nombreux désaccords qui entre nous existent encore Tout peut se discuter si l’on sait pardonner d’abord Qu’importe ce que peuvent écrire les défaitistes de tous bords Porter le deuil de l’avenir, je m’y refuse encore
La tolérance finira par l’emporter sur la médisance Et ce jour là, sur terre Il n’y aura pas plus heureux que moi»
Many readers wrote to Bambi, either on this blog or more privately, to express how much they also appreciate Christmas carols, as per a recent post shown below. Thanks to each one of them. This brief musical post is in the the spirit of the season. Some of you may recall that Bambi was fascinated by the talent of singer Alexis Carlier from France. Thanks to her friend Aline for making her discover him. Since then, she has been a faithful fan :). In turn, she hopes you will enjoy Mr. Carlier’s unique way of singing the following songs.
A picture of a Christmas tree in Beirut. Taken from An Nahar Lebanese newspaper.
The last time Bambi passed by this place in Beirut was on August 30, 2023. Thanks to Abouna [or Father] Elias who kindly drove her in his car, which followed the funeral hearse taking her mom in a coffin to her resting place. It was like a last tour of final good-bye for her in the familiar streets of her beloved city before reaching her final destination.
Today, Bambi saw the picture shown above in a Lebanese newspaper. The same place now has a beautiful Christmas tree. A few people gathered to see it light up (https://shorturl.at/aKLU4). Bambi was touched to read the word “HOPE” on the tree in a country where the latter is much needed. May hope for better days at all levels (economy, security, tolerance, peace, health, etc.) shine on Lebanon, its neighbourhood, and on all our beautiful planet. May love, and hope of more love, along with healing and peace, enlighten people’s hearts while opening their minds.
Christmas carols remind us of our childhood. They transport us back in time.
For those of us who may be Christian and perhaps with faith in the heart, this season is happy by essence because it is all about the birth of a baby not like anyone else.
Some of us may be grieving. Others may be going through adverse times for different reasons. Yet, there is and will always be magic, peace, and comfort in Christmas melodies. At least this is Bambi’s opinion today on the first day of the month of December. This is why her post will share a few songs she has enjoyed lately.
May music comfort, motivate, and entertain you all. May peace fill your hearts, whether you are into such songs or not. May we all say yes to love and learn to say no to violence… against all. This is Bambi’s prayer to the entire planet, especially hot places of our world.
Bambi adores the French singer, Mr. Jean Ferrat. She even has an older post about his music, shown further below. Today, she shares with you a superb performance of his song “C’est beau la vie” by Mr. Marc Hervieux from Québec, Canada. May your life be filled with purpose, love, gratitude, peace… and/or whatever else you value.
Que c’est beau la vie (by Jean Ferrat… English follows).
Saskatchewan is one of the Prairie provinces of Canada. It is one of the two provinces, which Bambi has never visited yet. It is surely on her to-do dream list.
Thankfully, without having to fly right now (she is too busy!), this dream flew to her today, thanks to Gina’s lens and generosity. Indeed, Gina’s four stunning pictures that you can appreciate below, were all taken in Big Quill Lake in southern Saskatchewan (https://shorturl.at/flBI8).
According to the Canadian Encyclopedia (https://shorturl.at/flBI8), the “Quill Lakes are three connected saline lakes in southeastern Saskatchewan. They are located 150 km north of Regina and 152 km east of Saskatoon. From west to east the lakes are named Big Quill, Middle Quill (also known as Mud Lake) and Little Quill. Despite its name, at 181 km2 Little Quill is the second largest of the three lakes. Big Quill is the largest at 307 km2. The Quill Lakes’ elevation is 516 m“… “The Quill Lakes are what remain of a large glacial lake. This glacial lake formed with the retreat of the continental ice sheet more than 10,000 years ago. The lakes are a hydrologically closed system, fed by numerous small streams, creeks and lakes with no outflow of water. They are shallow and salty. The Quill Lakes are saline due to high evaporation levels that leave the water concentrated in dissolved salts and minerals. Big Quill is Canada’s largest saline lake and Little Quill is the third largest (Old Wives Lake, also in Saskatchewan, is the second largest at 296 km2)“.
This post will end with Mr. Georges Moustaki’s beautiful and highly ecological (or environmental) French old song entitled “Il y avait un jardin“. It is about the beauty of our world, like a garden, which needs to be cherished and maintained.
P.S. # 1: One thing is sure: Canada is breath-taking! According to Gina, the people of this area of our country are all so friendly. Why isn’t Bambi surprised? This is a classical attitude in her welcoming Canada :).
P.S. # 2: A forthcoming post will be devoted to the beautiful sunsets in Florida, USA, thanks to the generosity of another friend and reader, Joëlle. Stay tuned everyone!
Big Quill Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada. A picture taken by Gina.
Big Quill Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada. A picture taken by Gina.
Big Quill Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada. A picture taken by Gina.
Big Quill Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada. A picture taken by Gina.
Bambi will start by thanking her “non-Christian” friend who recently shared with her a rather odd article in the National Post, which informed us of the following: “the Canadian Human Rights Commission, which wields broad quasi-judicial powers, argued that a day off on Christmas is ‘discriminatory’ ” (https://shorturl.at/mrwA3).
Interestingly, just the night before reading the above, Bambi read about the same nonsense in the Journal de Montréal, thanks to a sarcastic French article by Mr. Richard Martineau entitled “Christmas is a colonialist holiday! Making Christmas a public holiday would be discriminatory...” (https://shorturl.at/qBJV8). Of note, Mr. Martineau reminded us of the following: “Every year, it’s the same thing. There is always a group that attacks the Christmas party. You should not say “Christmas tree” because it discriminates against other religions. The focus should not be on Santa Claus, because it is sexist and patriarchal. You should not play the song Baby, It’s Cold Outside, because it is an apology for rape. We should not install crèches in town halls, because this does not respect secularism”.
Related to the above, what do you reply to people who lost the sense of childhood wonder and historical perspective to that extent, regardless of their own family traditions? You do not have to be of a specific spiritual faith to appreciate its beauty, including the magic of Christmas-related decorations or traditionally-based days off. For instance, think of the Diwali light magic celebrations or the sources of joy of Ramadan social gatherings. Think also of the nice Jewish tradition of lighting the menorah candles on Hanukkah? Bearing all the above in mind, why should we sacrifice Christmas’ lovely traditions just because it is historically linked to the silent majority (and to individuals members of visible or invisible minorities in Canada for whom Christmas means the world, whether they are religious or not)?
To conclude this post on a musical note, it is time for the lovely French version of the “Oh Christmas Tree” song now with the uniquely talented Mr. Kendji Girac. Enjoy!
