Christmas 2024 in Guyana: When the tradition keeps on living

By Sébastien Sigouin
Canada’s High Commissioner to Guyana

If there was one distinctive part of my Christmases growing up that I remember clearly, is that there was always music. One of my uncles would play the accordion and another would keep the beat by clapping metal spoons between his fingers. Our family and friends would sing and dance, all in an incredible festive spirit. These are the memories of my childhood Christmases in Québec (French Canada) – when the winters were real winters, with metres of snow and freezing cold from November to April.
My relatives would gather for the Christmas eve dinner at my maternal grandmother’s house which always smelt like ham, turkey, meat pies, homemade chutney and pineapple and coconut squares. With my cousins and relatives, I would run around the chatting and laughing adults and play some games, all while watching with anticipation all the gifts piled up under the natural pine tree that had been cut a few days before by the neighbouring farmer.

To quiet our noisy stomachs, we would try to get some of that delicious food that was prohibited until we returned from the midnight mass. I always wanted some of the mashed potatoes. The Sandman would eventually do his thing, and I would fall asleep on one of the beds where all the winter coats of everyone had been piled up. It would smell of the perfume of this aunt and the pipe tobacco of that uncle, and it was soft and warm and would provide the power nap I needed to get ready for the long celebrations. With our big coats, boots, hats and mittens, we would all go to the midnight mass and my grandfather would give us his annual blessing with his throat choked by emotions, and then, the party would really begin and last through the night until it was time to have breakfast with the leftovers. And this was repeated for days, as we went from one family member to another and hopped all the way from Christmas to the New Year.
Now, my wife Lilian and I have four children, and now a son-in-law and a 1-year-old grand-daughter. We come from different backgrounds, me with my French, Irish and Indigenous ancestors, and hers from Central America and Spain. But we always try to keep the tradition in our own way. I have continued the tradition of the holiday gatherings, though, while not having the magnitude of those of my childhood, I continue to make my grandmother proud by ensuring that I prepare the turkeys, hams and meat pies that I grew up eating for Christmas. With our stomachs full, feeling blessed to have one another, I would dance the night away with my wife to French Canadian and Spanish songs, with our kids looking at us with a mix of bemusement and, dare I say it, pride.
This year is a bit different for our family. On December 24, my wife Lilian and I marked our fourth month of being in Guyana. Our arrival has been intense, discovering a new country, new cultures, fabulous people, and trying to do as much as we can so that we can make this beautiful land our new home. In these four months, we celebrated many cultural and religious events including Navratri, Thanksgiving, Dia de los Muertos and Diwali. I met with as many people as I could, and we went outside of Georgetown as far as time would allow, all the way to Suriname on one side, and up the Essequibo, past Bartica and the Kaieteur falls on the other, and we even saw the scarlet ibis on the Demerara. We also visited lodges in the jungle, Linden, and its blue lake and oh, did I mention cricket?
The holiday period is now in full swing in Guyana and everywhere, there is music and people going about their last-minute shopping which somewhat reminds me of home. To fully immerse ourselves in the Guyanese Christmas festivities, my wife and I visited the Christmas market and saw the tree lighting. We’ve also had more than our fair share of pepperpot, black cake and ginger beer which our Guyanese friends have generously shared with us. I can safely say that the pepperpot has lived up to my expectations, as it was one of the first foods we were advised to try when arriving in Guyana. Everywhere we go, we see people ready to celebrate, and a country where the cultural and religious heritages join together in the holiday spirit. This is not so different from where I come from, which speaks to what unites us all as human beings: family, friends and being grateful to be healthy.
This season for me is also a time to slow down the pace a little and reflect on the path so far. We are privileged to have two of our daughters visiting us for the holidays. Our son visited us earlier in November, so we are only missing our eldest daughter and her family, but the time will come for their visit.
We have already started marking the festive season with our other family, which is all the employees of the Canadian High Commission and their families. A little over a week ago, we hosted a Christmas party with Christmas music and steel pan music, fabulous multi-ethnic food, and a pool party on the side. It was for me an opportunity to share my gratitude with all my colleagues who have shown us immense hospitality since our arrival here. I was also able to successfully pull off a surprise, by dressing as Santa for our gift exchange. It was such a joy to hear the squeals of laughter and surprise from those present and take photos while exchanging gifts with our colleagues. It was well worth the heat of the Santa suit!
Another aspect of this year’s holidays that I thoroughly enjoyed and was very meaningful to me was the collaborations with my colleagues from the High Commission and our friends from the Canada-Guyana Chamber of Commerce, for the ‘Holly Jolly Project’. We joined together and shared the holiday spirit by giving food hampers to over 60 families in need in the Sophia area. Canada already has a significant development assistance programme in Guyana, and this was a way to bring some extra holiday festivities and very tangible joy to families that live so close to us. A small start for the first year of this project, but a meaningful one.
As for my wife and two visiting daughters, we are ready with our stock of pepper pot, salt fish, garlic pork, roti and chicken curry. Or do we say curry chicken? The turkey is also thawing, and we have everything to make mashed potatoes, and the baked ham and shepherd pie will soon follow. We might indulge with some salmon too. We will get our stomachs full, we will visit some friends, videoconference our children and families back home, feel blessed, exchange gifts and yes, I will dance the night away with my wife. Well, at least until the Sandman does his thing. It will also be a time to be grateful. Grateful for this generous land and its people that welcomed us. Time to say thanks to the new friends we made, and time to think of all the good things coming our way in the New Year.
So as we say from where I come from, Joyeux Noël et Bonne Année!