How Can Girls Touch Lives at Christmas? - By Ene Theresa Owuna

Christmas is a time set aside to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, but in my opinion, its a most special time/period that brings along with it beauty, peace and most importantly love. Love was the force that pushed Jesus to come to the world and redeem us, Love is also what every human soul feeds on to live a healthy emotional life.

The basic thing that the world seems to be lacking is love. In the world today, a wide range of its population hungers for love and it cannot be satisfied by better cars or a posh life. Even if we multiplied all our artificial and petty desires a thousand-fold and actually succeeded in satisfying them all, we would still have failed to smother our innate desire to feel loved. However, Christmas brings an opportunity to show love to family, friends, neighbours, even foes and the world at large by sharing and giving, because even the simplest of gifts and the smallest act of love can melt the most hardened of hearts and mend broken families. Deep down in every turbulent teenager, hardened criminal, frustrated and depressed man or woman is a desire to feel wanted and useful, and all these desires can be satisfied when one feels loved.

 Once again this Christmas heralds the prospect of a new and better world. It is indeed possible for us to create a society where human beings are loved rather than judged, where compassion and understanding have dominance over the cold logic of profit and corruption, where peace between people is not an option but a necessity based on a heartfelt conviction that love conquers all. Two thousand years ago in Bethlehem it was the angels in heaven who sang the hymn of peace to all men, it is now high time for us humans, girls with dignity, purpose and a calling to make the world a better place to sing our own hymns of peace through deeds of love and reciprocal respect. We can plant love in the hearts of people around us this Christmas by giving gifts, showing acts of love, helping our neighbours and our community and encourage others to spread the message of love so that the lives of others can be changed because love is a powerful weapon of change, for as Mother Teresa said "It is Christmas every time you smile at your brother and offer him your hand. It is Christmas every time you let God love through you"

Most people are concerned with leaving a better world for our children, how about we leave better children for our world. So go girls!!! Spread the message of love and touch a million lives in the process.

Ene is 17 years old. She hails from Benue state Nigeria. Her above essay clinched 8th place in the Girl Pride Circle Christmas Essay Competition.