A Boxing Day and a Vexing day.
26th. December evokes two distinct memories. One from the early years of 1980s. when we were residing in Lagos, Nigeria. We had traveled to Jos , during Christmas break, partly on holiday, partly for the husband to keep an appointment there on the 27th. When we enquired about what X'mas festivities we could expect in Jos, the capital city Plateau State, we were told that "Boxing Day", on the 26th., would be the most exciting event of the season. Thats when, for the first time, I heard about "Boxing Day" . 'Boxing ? Probably a traditional sporting event' i thought, remembering the Wrestling shows put up by the Pehlwans of the famous traditional Garadis ( akhadas) during Dasara in Mysore. An uneducated wild guess it turned out to be ; way off the mark ! I learnt that the "Boxing" in Boxing Day denoted a regular box used for collecting monetary gifts. This boxing custom apparently originated in Victorian England and had spread to its