Christmas Eve and Christmas Day 2018 from Across the Miles
By Irene Parker
The holidays provide an opportunity for better communication, but better communication should be a year round opportunity.
Article Title: Christmas Truce of 1914
Author: History.com Editors
During World War I, on and around Christmas Day 1914, the sounds of rifles firing and shells exploding faded in a number of places along the Western Front in favor of holiday celebrations in the trenches and gestures of goodwill between enemies.
Did you know? On December 7, 1914, Pope Benedict XV suggested a temporary hiatus of the war for the celebration of Christmas. The warring countries refused to create any official cease-fire, but on Christmas the soldiers in the trenches declared their own unofficial truce.
Starting on Christmas Eve, many German and British troops sang Christmas carols to each other across the lines, and at certain points the Allied soldiers even heard brass bands joining the Germans in their joyous singing.
At the first light of dawn on Christmas Day, some German soldiers emerged from their trenches and approached the Allied lines across no-man’s-land, calling out “Merry Christmas” in their enemies’ native tongues. At first, the Allied soldiers feared it was a trick, but seeing the Germans unarmed they climbed out of their trenches and shook hands with the enemy soldiers. The men exchanged presents of cigarettes and plum puddings and sang carols and songs. There was even a documented case of soldiers from opposing sides playing a good-natured game of soccer.
The so-called Christmas Truce of 1914 came only five months after the outbreak of war in Europe and was one of the last examples of the outdated notion of chivalry between enemies in warfare. It was never repeated—future attempts at holiday ceasefires were quashed by officers’ threats of disciplinary action—but it served as heartening proof, however brief, that beneath the brutal clash of weapons, the soldiers’ essential humanity endured.
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-i/christmas-truce-of-1914
Our 2017 Christmas Wish (I don’t feel I need to improve upon)
December 22, 2017 restated December 24, 2018
I wish to thank all our readers and supporters as we journey down the path towards resolution of conflict whether with our timeshare, or with our world. The relationships that have blossomed and grown are precious to me. The few I have had the opportunity to meet face to face solidifies and takes our relationship to a new level. I look forward to more of those experiences in the New Year.
There are no words to express the love and support I’ve felt from my band of brothers and sisters seeking to reform timeshare for the better, and we know there are honest timeshare sales agents and even some executives who feel the same.
Here’s hoping 2018 (19) will bring communication, resolution and relief to those who have laughed and cried with me over life’s ups and down. I also want to wish the best to those who may not like us very much, but know in their heart we only wish for better accountability, transparency and respect.
Thank you Charles Thomas, our Facebook admins, those supporting timeshare members working behind the scenes, our past and future Inside Timeshare contributors and to all our Facebook members, Inside Timeshare readers, Timeshare Accountability Group
followers as we change our name to reflect our mission:
We seek to provide timeshare members a way to proactively address membership concerns; to advocate for timeshare reform; to obtain greater disclosure from the company; to advocate for a viable secondary market; and to educate prospective buyers.
https://www.facebook.com/timeshareadvocategroup/
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https://everythingabouttimeshares.com/consider-exchange-options/
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