-Brian Mendonça
There is always a sense of wistfulness when the Magi
comes visiting. After taking a final
look at all the Christmas decorations, we started taking them down.
First to go were the Christmas counterpanes we had purchased
specially for the season. One had a leaf-green border with red berries strewn
all over it against a background of yellow. The other one for Dwayne’s room was
printed with Christmas motifs against a border of red and white.
The Christmas tree was next. Unfurling the lights and
the glitter around it made it look increasingly bare. Once the hangings (of
Chinese make) were off, the tree was dismantled and placed in a long box of
hard card-board . The mood was morose enough for it to look like a coffin.
The star which had shown brightly by the hall window
was folded up, and the extension wiring and bulb drawn in.
The crib which had provided an enduring message of
peace and love, sat silently awaiting its turn. Each figure was wrapped up and
placed gently in the thermocol box provided for the storage. This was their
second Christmas at our home. Now they had to hibernate for another year. The
curtains and the table-cloth were next.
After all this was done we surveyed our effort. The
hall seemed denuded of its former energy, but it still had a grace of its own.
It was the 7th of January.
Satisfied with our effort, we rolled downhill from
Porvorim that night to celebrate the feast of the three kings at Reis Magos. The
papers had advertised a Reis Magos Fiesta 2020 on the grounds of Reis Magos
church. In stark contrast to our stripping the house of all the decorations,
the village of Reis Magos was resplendent with stars.
The church of Reis Magos is dedicated to the Magi.
The imposing structure is the first church in Bardez and was built by the
Franciscans in 1551. High up behind the
main altar there is a beautiful muti-coloured wood relief of the three kings
adoring baby Jesus. Along the sides of the church are wall paintings depicting
various events.
From the church we made our way to the fields nearby
from where the sound of music could be heard. (The MC could not make up her mind
whether to pronounce Reis as Reis or Rees.)
Tidal Wave sounded good. From where we were sitting we could see they had
the crowd swaying. ‘Maria Pitache’ was specially loved. The field was a sea of
denims. For dinner we had Sampada’s delicious Chicken Xacuti (she said the
chicken was from Sangli). Accompaniments included stuffed squid, kalwa masala,
and prawn cutlets. With a mild beer to
wash it down we did not really mind as the season slipped by into the enchanting
night.
When we returned home we realized that like the three
kings we had gone by one route (via Pilerne) to Reis Magos and had returned by
another way (via Betim).
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Published in Gomantak Times Weekender, Panjim, Goa on Sunday, 12th January 2020. Photo of Reis Magos church, Reis Magos, North Goa taken by Brian Mendonca on 7th January 2020. Photo (below) Tidal Wave in full cry at the venue on 7th January 2020. Pix courtesy Brian Mendonca.
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