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Eachyearthatpassesseemstohaveitsowncharacter.Someleaveuswithafeelingofsatisfaction,othersarebestforgotten.2009wasadifficultyearformany,inparticularthosefacingthecontinuingeffectsoftheeconomicdownturn.IamsurethatwehaveallbeenaffectedbyeventsinAfghanistanandsaddenedbythecasualtiessufferedbyourforcesservingthere.Ourthoughtsgoouttotheirrelationsandfriendswhohaveshownimmensedignityinthefaceofgreatpersonalloss.But,wecanbeproudofthepositivecontributionthatourservicemenandwomenaremaking,inconjunctionwithourallies.Wellover13,000soldiersfromtheUnitedKingdom,andacrosstheCommonwealth-Canada,Australia,NewZealandandSingapore-arecurrentlyservinginAfghanistan.Thedebtofgratitudeowedtotheseyoungmenandwomen,andtotheirpredecessors,isindeedprofound.Itis60yearssincetheCommonwealthwascreatedandtoday,withmorethanabillionofitsmembersundertheageof25,theorganisationremainsastrongandpracticalforceforgood.RecentlyIattendedtheCommonwealthHeadsofGovernmentMeetinginTrinidadandTobagoandheardhowimportanttheCommonwealthistoyoungpeople.Newcommunicationtechnologiesallowthemtoreachouttothewiderworldandsharetheirexperiencesandviewpoints.Formany,thepracticalassistanceandnetworksoftheCommonwealthcangiveskills,lendadviceandencourageenterprise.Itisinspiringtolearnofsomeoftheworkbeingdonebytheseyoungpeople,whobringcreativityandinnovationtothechallengestheyface.ThepersonalandlivingbondIhaveenjoyedwithleaders,andwithpeopletheworldover,hasalwaysbeenmoreimportantinpromotingourunitythansymbolismalone.Itisimportanttokeepdiscussingissuesthatconcernusall-therecanbynomorevaluableroleforourfamilyofnations.IhavebeencloselyassociatedwiththeCommonwealththroughmostofitsexistence.TheCommonwealthisnotanorganisationwithamission.Itisratheranopportunityforitspeopletoworktogethertoachievepracticalsolutionstoproblems.Inmanyaspectsofourlives,whetherinsport,theenvironment,businessorculture,theCommonwealthconnectionremainsvividandenriching.Itis,inlotsofways,thefaceofthefuture.Andwithcontinuingsupportanddedication,IamconfidentthatthisdiverseCommonwealthofnationscanstrengthenthecommonbondthattranscendspolitics,religion,raceandeconomiccircumstances.WeknowthatChristmasisatimeforcelebrationandfamilyreunions;butitisalsoatimetoreflectonwhatconfrontsthoselessfortunatethanourselves,athomeandthroughouttheworld.Christiansaretaughttolovetheirneighbours,havingcompassionandconcern,andbeingreadytoundertakecharityandvoluntaryworktoeasetheburdenofdeprivationanddisadvantage.Wemayourselvesbeconfrontedbyabewilderingarrayofdifficultiesandchallenges,butwemustneverceasetoworkforabetterfutureforourselvesandforothers.Iwishyouall,whereveryoumaybe,averyhappyChristmas.过去每年似乎都各具特点。一些年份让我们心满意足，一些年份则最好忘却。2009年对很多人来说都不好过，尤其是那些深受经济衰退之苦的人们。我相信，我们所有人都受到阿富汗战事影响，为英军士兵伤亡感到悲伤。我们向这些士兵的家人和朋友表示慰问，他们面对巨大个人损失表现得无比高尚。但我们应该为我们的士兵与盟友作出的积极贡献而感到骄傲。英国和包括加拿大、澳大利亚、新西兰和新加坡在内的英联邦国家眼下共有超过1.3万名士兵在阿富汗服役。我们对这些年轻士兵以及先前在阿富汗服役过的士兵表示深深感激。今年是英联邦成立60周年，今天其成员国25岁以下人口超过10亿，为它保持长久的强大和实用提供了力量源泉。最近我刚刚参加了在特立尼达和多巴哥举行的英联邦政府首脑会议，听到联邦对年轻人是多么重要。新的通信技术使他们能够接触到更广阔的世界，分享他们的经验和观点。对于许多人来说，英联邦的实际援助与网络可以提供技能，给予意见和鼓励进取。令人鼓舞的是，我了解到一些年轻人正在做着一些事情，他们面对挑战，富于创造力和创新精神。对关系到我们所有人的问题保持讨论很重要，它让我们的大家庭产生更大的价值。在英联邦成立以来的大部分时间里，我都同它联系紧密。我个人同各国领袖、人民密不可分。这不单是象征意义，也能促进我们的团结。英联邦并非一个具某种使命的组织，而更是一个让各国人民合作、解决困难的平台。在涉及我们生活的许多方面，不论是体育、环境、商业或文化，英联邦国家之间的联系紧密而丰富。在很多方面这展现未来的前景。随着不断的支持和贡献，我相信英联邦国家的多元化能加强各国在政治、宗教、种族和经济环境的凝聚力。众所周知，圣诞节是欢庆与家人团聚的时候，但我们也可以借这个时机回顾那些国内外不幸者面临的困境。基督徒被教导要爱他们的邻居，有同情心，乐于慈善和志愿工作，以减轻贫困和不利的负担。我们自己会面临一连串的困难和挑战，这些困难和挑战会令我们感到困惑，但我们绝不能停下脚步。而应该继续努力，为自己和他人创造更美好的未来。不论你们现时身在何处，我都祝愿你们圣诞快乐。