I originally posted this short poem and rewrite of a Christmas carol to celebrate human diversity, on December 25, 2015.

Reflecting on it today, I was compelled to rewrite and update the post, after eight years of toxic politics, overt racism, rising nationalism, fears of fascism, and two unjust, cruel, faith-and-culture-based wars-in-progress, have left many people around world feeling angry, fearful, and hopeless…

We must celebrate our beautiful differences — every day!

I went walking with family by by the water on a warm Christmas Day, and was delighted by the number and diversity of people we encountered. I was inspired to write a haiku and joyfully mangle the “Twelve Days of Christmas” carol* as follows:

On a warm day of Christmas,
By the water’s edge, there were:
Twelve runners running,
Eleven children playing,
Ten people prattling,
Nine Latins laughing,
Eight Muslims musing,
Seven Jews-a-jogging,
Six Christians chatting,
Five Hindu fam – i – lies;
Four calling moms,
Three French men,
Two mixed couples,
And a Buddhist in a good mood.

DISCLAIMER: this re-write of the original lyrics was done to match the cadence and alliteration of the original. There is absolutely NO significance to my choice of WHICH cultures or faiths were mentioned, the activities with which they are paired, or the number of people engaged in each activity. In fact, the numbers have NO meaning whatsoever, except that they follow the countdown in the original song. No one, no culture or faith, was intentionally or willfully maligned in writing the poem, words of explanation, or my silly rewrite of the song. In fact, this entire post is written with deep respect for ALL cultures and beliefs of the human race, and heartfelt joy in its beautiful diversity, which I enjoyed on a warm winter day walking by the shore…

// haikumages

*Here are the original lyrics of “Twelve Days of Christmas” which I lovingly reimagined in the post above:

On the twelfth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me:
Twelve drummers drumming,
Eleven pipers piping,
Ten lords a-leaping,
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree!