A caller to the radio show Speak out BVI last evening November 20, 2012 lamented the late start to Christmas related activities in the Virgin Islands. The same caller also noted that the activities only last for a short period and takes away from the full spirit of Christmas being felt. Photo: VINO/File

The same caller also noted that the activities only last for a short period and takes away from the full spirit of Christmas being felt.

Host of the show Douglas Wheatley agreed with the caller that the activities for the Christmas season started too late and only lasted for a short period. Mr Wheatley suggested that Christmas related activities start in October in order to evoke the spirit of Christmas very early.

“It’s all in the anticipation, expectation, preparation...cleaning, painting...all part of the thing that tells you Christmas is coming. It is not just the cool breeze that blows from the North that tells you Christmas is coming but the activities and the aroma, the ham, the cooking, the baking, all of those preparations...”

Another caller said there was need for a return to the days when the spirit of Christmas was felt with all the Fungei bands around and the carolling.

“I agree with you that we need to get into the Christmas spirit and we need to go back to the serenading and carol singing and so forth,” Mr Wheatley said.

Mr Wheatley also said he has encouraged some of the groups in East End to continue to go out and do carolling and appealed to residents to make the young people feel welcome whenever they come around to do carolling.

The talk show host also said there was need to take what was positive in the old days and maintain it and take it into the future because “we have to pass on our culture.. I think at some point in history we dropped the ball...and I think we took a negative attitude to a lot of the things that we have been doing. We wanted to be more modern and we forgot about those things and we adopted new fangled ideas that came from elsewhere.”

Mr Wheatley also said, however, there has since been a renaissance of culture and people are now more aware of the importance of culture.

“I think we are standing on good grounds now that our culture will become strong again. A country’s culture is that thread that keeps the country together...we must resolve to make a difference...spread the word and get moving towards a resurgence of culture,” said Mr Wheatley