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CNN Sunday Morning

Christmas Around the World

Aired December 25, 2005 - 07:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Christmas around the world. From Bethlehem to Rome, Baghdad and points in between, millions gather to share in the spirit of the season.
From the CNN Center in Atlanta, this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING.

It is 7:00 a.m. in Atlanta; 2:00 p.m. in Bethlehem; and 3:00 p.m. in Baghdad.

Merry Christmas and thank you for joining us. I'm Tony Harris. Betty Nguyen has the weekend off.

We'll have a complete wrap of the global celebration. But first, a look at some of the other stories making news at this hour.

We will take you to Banda Aceh, Indonesia, a year after the tsunami. As the rebuilding continues, there is a baby boom under way. We'll tell you more about that.

Also, a high-tech holiday reunion courtesy of CNN. And you'll be a part of it. We will reunite a soldier in Iraq with his family back home.

And sounds of the season.

Byron Cage, an award-winning gospel singer, joins to us share some Christmas cheer.

Well, many here in the U.S. are just now waking up to the Christmas holiday. The religious celebrations have been well under way in other parts of the world.

At Vatican City, Pope Benedict XVI gave his first Christmas blessing as pontiff to the thousands of pilgrims making it to midnight mass. This morning he sent out pleas for peace in his Christmas message to the world.

Meanwhile, Britain's archbishop of Canterbury underscores the miraculous power of god's love by highlighting acts of human forgiveness. He praised two families who forgave criminals who attacked their loved ones.

It's cold and rainy in Bethlehem, but the messages of love and peace are warming things up this Christmas. As our Guy Raz reports, the historic birthplace of Jesus is seeing more pilgrims and tourists than it has in years. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Midnight in Bethlehem, where for 2,000 years Christians have gathered to celebrate mass. The birthplace of Christianity experiencing a rebirth of its own. Tourists thumbing through guide books, a sight practically unseen in the last five years.

MAYOR VICTOR BATARSEH, BETHLEHEM, WEST BANK: As I've heard, most of the hotel beds are booked. And I hope that this trend will keep on for the whole year round, not only at Christmastime.

RAZ: Thirty thousand pilgrims packed into Manger Square to welcome the arrival of Latin patriarch Michel Sabbah. Security a bit tighter this year with Palestinian police making their presence felt.

Earlier this week, Bethlehem City Hall was taken over by armed Palestinian militants protesting the lack of jobs. But this Christmas Eve the mood was spiritual rather than anxious. Even, said British tourist Margaret Percy, hopeful.

MARGARET PERCY, BRITISH TOURIST: It gives me a sensation that -- you know, that we are all human and that we will get it right. I think we will. I've been hoping and praying all my life. But when I come here, I think that -- I think this is a chance.

RAZ: There are few commercial trappings of Christmas here. The decorations are spare, few signs of Santa Claus. Christmas in Bethlehem is still very much about its namesake.

(on camera): The atmosphere in Bethlehem during Christmastime often serves as a gauge for the broader Palestinian-Israeli conflict. If this year is anything to go by, the atmosphere is changing, and perhaps for the better.

Guy Raz, CNN, Bethlehem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Nine U.S. service members got the Christmas call of a lifetime. President Bush phoned those nine Americans serving overseas, including some in Iraq. The White House says the president wanted to tell them he was thinking of them and their families over the holidays.

Meantime, in Iraq, a soldier's Christmas melody and candlelight vigil. Troops from the Army's 10th Mountain Division raised their voices in song. And just for fun, what's Christmas without a sleigh, a desert sleigh, Humvee-style, pulled by soldiers dressed as reindeer?

Merry Christmas in Iraq.

In Afghanistan, a dose of Christmas cheer from back home. The 1,000 or so soldiers of Task Force Fury are getting individual presents from the mother of an Army specialist who was serving with them. CNN's Gary Nurenberg introduces us to one determined woman delivering on Christmas half a world away.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAT JACOBS, MILITARY MOM: This is Company A, Scott's company. And it starts at company headquarters and has the 1st platoon, 2nd platoon, 3rd platoon. It's also got a weapons and mortar section.

GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Army mom Pat Jacobs knows about military sacrifice.

JACOBS: My father. My oldest brother. Nick's brother. We've been in most of the conflicts since way back when. There's been a Jacobs of some branch of the family in there somewhere.

NURENBERG: Her parents said it would never happen again that everyone would be home at the same time.

JACOBS: And it never did. Because this one was killed.

NURENBERG: So she knows the risks faced by her 29-year-old son Scott, serving in Task Force Fury and has been sending him care packages stuffed with things like the soap and socks and treats you can't find in the caves of Afghanistan.

JACOB: I found out that he had buddies that maybe are not getting what they need.

NURENBERG: Scott would e-mail his mother passing on requests from his friends.

JACOB: So-and-so needs some socks, so-and-so needs some eye drops, so-and so need some need gummy bears. So we started, you know, doing this. And it was more and more. The care packages were going out every week. And then it dawned on me, hey; these guys aren't going to get Christmas.

NURENBERG: So, Pat left donation jars at businesses and in her home town Culpepper, Virginia and turned Scott's bedroom into something of a Santa's workshop, stuffing Christmas packages for packages for more than 1,000 troops.

JACOBS: And this is from me. This is from mama. Every box has a stocking. And then you top it off with the American flag pin that they can put on something else later.

Each shoebox has a Christmas card to one of their heroes. That's what they all say. We decided that the smaller the pay, the bigger the box.

So this is a captain's box. OK? But this is a private's box, because he gets a whole lot less money.

NURENBERG: Big box or little box... JACOBS: I hope they feel real happy. I hope they realize people love them. And I hope they realize that we care about them. They're going to have a Christmas. They're going to have a Christmas. They might have to eat MRES, but they're going to have a Christmas.

NURENBERG: Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And later this hour, a soldier's story you won't want to miss. A high-tech reunion linking Baghdad and Atlanta this morning. And you can only see it right here on CNN.

But first, we'll head back to Banda Aceh, Indonesia, where they are rebuilding after last year's devastating tsunami in every way possible. We'll explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Still ahead, Christmas Katrina style. Gift ideas from the Gulf Coast that are turning tragedy into triumph. And the sweet sounds of Byron Cage. You'll want to grab a cup of coffee for this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We flew today over the town of Malabo on the west coast of Aceh. That's closest to the epicenter.

As you can see from the aerial footage, this town has just been demolished. Eighty percent of the structures there have been destroyed. Markets and schools were just swept up in the tsunami wave.

This was actually hit twice, first by the earthquake which shattered buildings, destroyed roads, cut off communication. And then the tsunami wave came in and killed thousands.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Man. CNN's Atika Shubert reporting on the tsunami that devastated South Asia almost a year ago. Today memorials honor the thousands of lives lost. Grieving relatives and friends gathered on beaches and at mass graves in Indonesia to remember the dead.

The dozen Asian nations struck by the tsunami are still struggling to rebuild. Atika Shubert helped lead our coverage of the disaster. She joins us now by videophone from Indonesia's provincial capital of Banda Aceh.

And Atika, good to talk to you. And I'm wondering, practically speaking, on the ground, how is the rebuilding effort going?

SHUBERT: The rebuilding effort is moving ahead. Slower in some areas, faster in others. But it is forging ahead. Behind me you can probably see Aceh's great mosque. Almost a year ago exactly we came here and it was standing in a sea of debris and destruction. That's all been cleared away now. There is construction happening all over the city.

And we -- in the last few days we've gone out, talked to people in the field, those still living in tents, those that are just starting to rebuild their lives, with some amazing stories of resilience and hope for the future. We actually met one woman, a midwife, who is now being honored for her humanitarian service during the tsunami.

Now, here is her story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHUBERT (voice over): Ratna is a midwife in Aceh, one of the lucky ones to survive last year's tsunami. Today she is making a house call to a special patient. Baby Sedela (ph) was born just hours after the disaster. Ratna remembers the father's panicked cry for help as they fled the giant waves on foot.

"I told them she can't wait. She is going to have this baby right now," Ratna recalls. "Get some string from the rice sacks and a knife. It's not ideal, but this is an emergency."

As aftershocks rumbled around them, Ratna delivers Sedela (ph) safely, with little more than a piece of string and a razor. Sedela's (ph) mother wasn't sure she'd make it.

"Thankfully, we found a house and some hot water, but that was all. I was resigned to my fate."

Sedela's (ph) father still can't believe he outran the tsunami waves carrying his family.

"I had a kid in each arm and my pregnant wife on my back. I don't know how I did it. If you asked me today, I couldn't do it again."

One year later, conditions have improved dramatically. Ratna has a new clinic serving up to 35 women a day.

(on camera): Ratna still needs help. The clinic, she says, runs short of contraceptives, and she needs electricity to run a 24-hour baby ward for a batch of newborns she is expecting.

(voice over): In fact, Aceh is in the middle of a baby boom as surviving mothers want to replace the families they lost. An estimated one-third of the tsunami fatalities were women and children.

"The quicker the better," these mothers say. "I don't think they feel at peace without their children," Ratna says. "It's getting so busy here, we may be creating more problems down the road."

December 26 will mark one year since the tsunami. Ratna is mindful that it is also Sedela's (ph) birthday. The family says they will treat it as an ordinary day, thankful just to be together.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SHUBERT: Tony, an estimated 30 percent of Aceh's registered midwives were actually killed in the tsunami. So Ratna is actually working day and night to service these mothers and their newborn babies -- Tony.

HARRIS: Atika, just a quick question. I'm wondering, you had an idea when you arrived on location, on site, that the scene would be bad. Were you prepared for exactly what you saw and how bad the situation was on the ground?

SHUBERT: A simple answer is no. When we arrived here we had heard about the devastation, but we honestly could not fathom how widespread the devastation was.

And I very distinctly recall walking into the square behind me and just being appalled at literally a sea of destruction, debris, and frankly, death. There were many bodies here. And it's really heartening to come back here a year later and see all that debris cleared, see the reconstruction that's going ahead, all of these new homes that are being built. And best of all, seeing how much hope there is from the Acehnese people for the future.

HARRIS: Atika Shubert for us from Banda Aceh, Indonesia.

Atika, thank you.

We will talk more about Atika next hour about Banda Aceh and the struggle to rebuild in that region.

Time now to check in on some top stories this Christmas morning.

Camilla, duchess of Cornwall, is joining the royal family for their annual Christmas Day church service. It's the first Christmas celebration for Charles and Camilla as husband and wife.

The coming new year will be a little late by a second, to be exact. Organizers of the annual Times Square ball drop are having to accommodate for this year's leap year and accompanying leap second.

And the world renowned Boy's Choir of Harlem hits a sour note. It's looking for a new home. The financially troubled group is millions of dollars in debt and is being evicted by New York City. It is also struggling with allegations that its founder ignored reports of sexual abuse.

A 100-year-old Christmas tradition in Louisiana went up in smoke by the bayou last night. Folks in Louisiana torched miles of massive bonfires on Christmas Eve. They set them along the Mississippi River's levee tops as they've done every year. The bayou bonfires are a welcome celebration for dozens of Hurricane Katrina victims.

Some say the bonfires originally served as lighted path for midnight mass travelers. But any kid in southern Louisiana knows it's to light up the river so Papa Noel, their version of Santa Claus, can find their homes in the dark.

Hurricane Katrina has inspired some unusual Christmas gift-giving in Louisiana. As our Gulf Coast correspondent Susan Roesgen found, New Orleans' businesses are finding the satire in the sad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This is one of the popular chocolate stores in New Orleans, Blue Frog Chocolates, where customers can get a whiff of sugar and satire. Chocolate houses with blue tarp roofs, and Katrina trash piles made out of chocolate and coconut.

Store owner Ann Strieffer says New Orleans needs chocolate right now.

ANN STREIFFER, STORE OWNER: It's actually been shown to process endorphins in our brains and makes us a little happier. So it's just something that helps us get through this.

ROESGEN: For many people in New Orleans, it's a bittersweet Christmas. But this is retail therapy. At Minon Faget gift shop, the big sellers are anything with a fleur de lait, the symbol of this badly-damaged city.

New Orleanians are proud of their history and distraught about what has been lost. But there's a spirit here that no hurricane could touch, a spirit that laughs when others cry.

ROESGEN (on camera): New Orleans women like to dress up. There's one item every fashionable woman here wants. It's the MRE handbag.

HEATHER MACFARLANE, HANDBAG DESIGNER: You couldn't destroy this, even if you wanted to. And an electrical cord, which the brown matched this brown perfectly.

ROESGEN (voice over): This is the zany side of New Orleans this Christmas. But there's a sentimental side, longing for the way things were. Perhaps the most popular gifts of all this year are what you'll find at Octavia Bookstore, books that show New Orleans before Katrina. The city in all her splendor, with hope for a better Christmas next year.

Susan Roesgen, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And up next, an incredible story of hope for one Iraqi family. We'll tell you how U.S. troops want to give baby Noor the gift of life this season.

And tune in to CNN throughout the day for King-size Christmas as we replay some of the best interviews from "LARRY KING LIVE," featuring stars like Jerry Seinfeld, Martha Stewart, Donald Trump, Barbara Walters and many more. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld spent Christmas Eve doling out dinner and words of encouragement to U.S. troops in Iraq. Sporting a chef's hat -- can we see that -- and spatula at a base in Mosul, Rumsfeld served the soldiers steak, crab legs and lobster.

Where is the chef's hat?

Rumsfeld then fed the soldiers some Christmas goodwill, telling them that -- oh, there we go -- telling them that helping to liberate 25 million Iraqis may be the best give they could ever give. It's the second Christmas that Rumsfeld has visited Iraq and the American troops stationed there.

You know, this isn't a Christmas story, but it seems appropriate in a season that focuses on giving, caring and children. American soldiers in Iraq have taken on a precious cause, a young life.

Here is CNN's Aneesh Raman from Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It could be any night for these U.S. troops loading up to go to war.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let's go! Let's go! Let's go! Give me 360, gentlemen!

RAMAN: Rapidly securing each location. But this night is unlike the others. This night they are here to save a little girl's life.

Her name is Noor, just 3 months old, born with a debilitating illness, Spina Bifida. Iraqi doctors in this poor Baghdad neighborhood gave Noor just 45 days to live. But then hope came from an unexpected source at an unexpected time.

CAPT. ANTHONY FOURNIER, U.S. ARMY: We originally came across the baby actually in a -- in a raid. We actually detained her uncle for a few days. But while we were in the house doing the raid, we saw the baby, and that's how it all kind of started.

RAMAN: Told of Noor's condition, told she needed emergency care as soon as possible to have any hope of surviving, care just not available in Iraq, Captain Anthony Fournier and his troops took on Noor's cause. They quickly arranged free flights to the U.S. for her and her family and the free medical care Noor so desperately needs in the soldier's hometown of Atlanta, Georgia.

In a war riddled with complexities, for Captain Fournier and his men this is blissfully basic.

FOURNIER: We can definitely see, hey, we're making a difference here, you know, at least in this one child's life, where a lot of times when you're -- when we're -- when we're out there patrolling, doing raids, arresting people, probably the more violent times of it, we -- I think we just needed an outlet like this.

STAFF SGT. ARCHER FORD IV, U.S. ARMY: We do our jobs here as infantry soldiers because we have to. That's our job and that's what we're asked to do, and we're happy to do it. But this is something that we want do. This is something that we feel that we can give back to the country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are passports difficult for you to get?

RAMAN: Noor and her family still need visas and passports. But Georgia's senator, Saxby Chambliss, says that should happen in a day or two. There is an urgency to all this, and it's not Noor's fragile health. Her family fears the revenge of insurgents.

Off camera, Noor's grandfather draws his finger across his throat asking us not to reveal their identities. He and the soldiers know the dangers for his granddaughter are real, but so is the hope for everyone.

CAPT. THOMAS JARRETT, MENTAL HEALTH OFFICER: Because a lot of these guys have been after us a long time and been shot at, blown up, been out here. And to actually directly intervene and help a young child, especially you see the family, to know how much it means to them I think it's probably a great definition of hearts and minds.

RAMAN: In the corner, a family member with prayer beads. Their faith now in these U.S. troops, who in this holiday season are doing all they can to save a little girl named Noor.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Great story. A lot of it based right here in Atlanta.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: All right. We'll take a break and we'll come back.

Thank you, Galen. Merry Christmas to you.

We'll come back with more CNN SUNDAY MORNING right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: What a great way to wake up on Christmas morning. Gospel singer Byron Cage doing a rendition of Mel Tourme's Christmas classic. And good morning. Merry Christmas to you. I'm Tony Harris. Betty Nguyen has the day off. We will hear much more from Byron in just a little bit, but first a look at other news this morning.

For Roman Catholics around the world, it is their first Christmas with Pope Benedict XVI. In his Christmas message to the world this morning the pope sent out a plea for spiritual awakening at a midnight pass at St. Peter's Basilica. The pope urged Catholics to pray for peace in the Middle East as he celebrated his first Christmas mass as pontiff.

Christmas in Iraq camp victory style. No snow, no sleigh, no problem. U.S. soldiers make do loading a Humvee with reindeer and Santa. This is just a taste of how army officers are helping soldiers celebrate Christmas far from home.

People in Thailand and elsewhere are remembering the victims of last year's Indian Ocean tsunami. A series of prayer vigils began this morning. Tomorrow for the first anniversary a minute's silence will be observed at 10 minutes after 10:00 Indonesian time. That's the moment the tsunami struck the region's beaches.

Well, you'd better watch out. Someone may be listening to your phone calls or reading your e-mail. The domestic surveillance authorized by President Bush appears to have a much broader reach than the White House first acknowledged. White House correspondent Dana Bash has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: The National Security Agency collects, traces and analyzes a large amount of information with the help of U.S. telephone and Internet companies a source familiar with the program confirms to CNN. It's part of the president's secret directive in 2002 to monitor communication inside the U.S. with terror suspects abroad. "The New York Times," which first reported the story, says American telecommunications companies granted the NSA access to monitor without a warrant large volumes of telephone and Internet communications flowing into and out of the United States.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I authorized the interception of international communications of people with known links to al Qaeda and related terrorist organizations.

BASH: In acknowledging the NSA domestic surveillance program, the president did not let on that the government is not just eavesdropping on conversations, but engaging in what intelligence and law enforcement experts call data mining, described to CNN by former officials familiar with the program as collecting and combing through large amounts of phone and Internet traffic, who talks to whom, from where and when, looking for patterns that point to terror suspects or plots.

GEORGE BAURIES, FORMER FBI AGENT: If two fellas are talking 50 times a day, you've established that there is some type of relationship between those two parties. You don't know the nature of it. You don't know whether it is criminal, non-criminal. But it furthers the investigative effort.

BASH: CNN was unable to confirm with any telecommunications companies whether they're cooperating with the government. The White House refused to confirm "The New York Times" report saying only this administration will continue to aggressively fight the war on terror and protect the American people, while at the same time uphold the civil liberties of the American people. Intelligence experts warn, any public discussion of highly classified activities is like revealing a battle plan to the enemy.

JOHN McLAUGHLIN, FMR. DEPUTY CIA DIRECTOR: You talk about programs like this publicly, the terrorists will go to school on everything they can learn and they will tighten their communications and they will make the job of intercepting then, the job of finding out what they're doing all the more difficult.

BASH: But civil liberties groups say collecting and using such information, especially without a warrant, is a major violation of privacy.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In the United States, no matter what the technology is, the American people have a right to privacy. They have a right to privacy with their communications. When they sign up for telephone service or they sign up for Internet service, they're not signing up for monitoring by the Federal government.

BASH: Officials familiar with the program insist they understand the sensitivities and that's why it's carefully reviewed every 45 days to make sure there are no abuses. Dana Bash, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And when we come back, songs of the season from Byron Cage. So warm up your ears because we're about to warm up your morning with some Christmas cheer. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BYRON CAGE: I just evolved as we do when we graduate and go from the 11th grade to the 12th grade. Each time I want to go to another level. And so as I look at this music on this particular CD, I can see definitely growth even in this one and hopefully the listeners and the believers who sing it all over the country, hope that they agree as well.

HARRIS: You have a big voice, big talent obviously. Have you ever been lured to more secular music?

CAGE: When I was at college at Morehouse I was. I had a secular group at the time called Voice but I just didn't feel like that was the music that I was supposed to be doing. I've been called to sing the gospel of Jesus Christ. I love doing it everywhere that I go and I have passion for it.

HARRIS: There are a lot of artists who will trace their roots back to the church who have at some point or another decided to take that leap. Maybe it's a leap of faith, a leap of faith, who knows, but to start recording more secular music. And even though you went through that phase, you came back to your home.

CAGE: That's exactly right. I came back to what my first love was, which is gospel music. I don't have any problem with the secular artists. I may have problems with some of the messages that they sing about, but God is love and he deals with love. When my wife and I are together and we're romantic, we love to listen to Jill Scott and (INAUDIBLE) some of the other ones just to create an environment. So I love music and even the musicians that you speak of, Beyonce Ushers and those guys, they make great music.

HARRIS: Right. I have to ask you. This has been such a difficult year for so many folks, thinking about hurricanes, Katrina and Wilma, which in Florida, Rita, along the Gulf coast as well. Is there something in the music for a lot of folks, they've had their faith tested this year?

CAGE: There is a song on there called "Broken But I'm Healed." And it deals with -- the line says so you entered into this building, you brought your burden. You brought your pain. But I have a message for you today that when you leave here, you won't be the same. And it just talks about how God can heal. He can deliver you not just physically, but he also can heal emotionally and mentally while you are going through trying times. And this certainly was a year that we've tried with Katrina and Rita and so many other disasters this year.

HARRIS: As folks get to know you, what's your guiding principle? What's your mission in life?

CAGE: My mission really is to seek God first in everything that I do. And (INAUDIBLE) some way somehow I can be a blessing, I can be a help to someone who needs it. And that's what I live my life by.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: You ready? Listen to more music now from Byron Cage.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Far from home, many soldiers celebrate the holiday season apart from their families and loved ones. Today we had hoped to bridge the gap to bring one family a little closer together for a special reunion. But unfortunately we just got a call here at CNN from Baghdad to inform us that our soldier, right there, soldier in Iraq, Sergeant Lloyd Swain, has been sent on a special mission and cannot join us this morning. There is the sergeant. But joining us here in Atlanta, his father Lloyd Swain Sr., his mother Bonita and the sergeant's two sons, Travis and Demetrius. Travis, hold up your hand. Demetrius? There you go. Good to see you all. Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas. And I know, this is a bit of a shock. It's not how we wanted this to work out this morning. So -- but it does point out how difficult this life is for this family right now when you don't really know from moment to moment when you'll get an opportunity to communicate. Is that about right?

LLOYD SWAIN SR, FATHER: That is absolutely accurate.

HARRIS: When do you get an opportunity? And what do you do? How do you prepare? I know you leave every phone that you have on, cell phones, everything else. But is that a way of life for you now?

BONITA SWAIN, MOTHER: Yes.

HARRIS: When is the last time Bonita that you talked to your son?

BONITA SWAIN: Actually, yesterday.

HARRIS: You just talked to him yesterday

BONITA SWAIN: It was just a wonderful sound just to hear him. All I could say, just that I miss you, I love you and hope to see you soon.

HARRIS: Lloyd, when was your son deployed?

LLOYD SWAIN SR.: I think he actually went to Iraq around May. But he was activated I believe around February.

HARRIS: Reservist. Correct?

LLOYD SWAIN SR.: Yes. He was about to be transferred to another unit. I don't know that that's actually taken place yet, but he had requested some transfers into another unit. So I don't know how that -- where that stands right now.

HARRIS: And Bonita, you've heard of other missions. He's been on other missions. This isn't his first mission. Does it always make you a little nervous when you hear news like this?

BONITA SWAIN: Always. It's very frightening. And I just pray daily.

HARRIS: Lloyd, I have to ask you, what did you think of your son joining the reserves and what do you think about this mission? I know he's going to serve his country.

LLOYD SWAIN SR.: Right. To make it real simple, we don't necessarily agree with the politics of it. I've always encouraged my children, whatever decision you make, live with it. Execute it. Do it well. And we'll talk about it when it's over.

HARRIS: How has he fared Bonita? You've had an opportunity to talk to him and there is something that a mom can hear that maybe dads don't even hear in a son's voice. What have you hard, how is he doing really?

BONITA SWAIN: He really doesn't tell me much. He tries to sound excited. Yesterday he sounded excited. But there have been a number of times when he's been a little down and I've always sent him e-mails just to say, you pray and you pray for the soldiers and you do the best that you can.

HARRIS: Travis, good to see you. What do you miss most about your dad?

TRAVIS SWAIN, SGT. LLOYD SWAIN'S SON: Going places with him.

HARRIS: What kind of places? What did you guys do together?

TRAVIS SWAIN: Mostly we'd spend father and son time along. HARRIS: Demetrius, it's been a while since you spoke to your dad. Huh?

DEMETRIUS SWAIN, SGT. LLOYD SWAIN'S SON: Yes, sir.

HARRIS: So you were looking forward to this morning?

DEMETRIUS SWAIN: Yes, sir.

HARRIS: How disappointed are you and what had you planned to say to him?

DEMETRIUS SWAIN: Oh, well, I'm sad that he wasn't able to come and I hope that he'll be able to come home soon so I can see him.

HARRIS: Lloyd, I have to ask you, we all play different roles in families. Who is your son in this family? Is he the organizer? Is he the one that keeps everything sort of light? Who is he in this family?

LLOYD SWAIN SR.: He's the one that tries his parents' patience. No. He's an interesting kid. And he's 35 years old. So to say "kid" really is not accurate. But it's always exciting. He's my oldest child. There is never a dull moment in his life or in ours.

HARRIS: Right. Right. Bonita, how proud are you of your son, what he's doing, what he's doing for this country?

BONITA SWAIN: Very proud. I'm just, I'm just so -- I don't know. I'm very proud of him though.

HARRIS: What did you want to say to him this morning?

BONITA SWAIN: I love you. And just that I'll be glad to see you and can't wait until you get home.

HARRIS: Lloyd, what did you want to say to him this morning?

LLOYD SWAIN: Do your job, do it well. Come home alive.

HARRIS: That's a dad, straight forward. That's what we do. Great to see you. I wish it had worked out for all us this morning. This would have been fabulous, but what a great family you are. Thanks for getting up Christmas morning and being with us. We appreciate it.

LLOYD SWAIN: Thank you.

HARRIS: We'll take a break and we'll come back with more CNN SUNDAY MORNING right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Now let's get back upstairs to the CNN weather center and Galen Crader for a look at the nation's weather on Christmas morning. Good morning, Galen.

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HARRIS: OK, Galen, thank you. The next hour of CNN SUNDAY MORNING begins in a moment.

"Now in the News:" Dual car bombs go off in central Baghdad, injuring several police, soldiers and civilians. Baghdad police say both bombs exploded within 15 minutes of each other, more than a dozen people are wounded.

We're still awaiting casualty reports, if any, out of Pakistan, this morning, where another earthquake struck. This morning's trembler registered 5.2 in magnitude rattling the capital of Islamabad. You'll recall the massive quake that struck the region back in October. Tens of thousands died, many more were left homeless.

It's another sour note for world renounced Boys Choir of Harlem which is looking for a new place to call home. New York City officials are evicting the group from the public school where the choir practices. Money problems and report of miss management and sexual misconduct have hounded the group in recent years.

And in Compton, California, it's a somewhat safer holiday thanks in part to guns for gifts swap. For the past three Saturdays sheriff deputies have traded $100 gift cards for guns. All told, cops collected more than 250 firearms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): There's many promises, thousands of promises are given, but until now they have not materialized. We have received many offers of help, but again, it never happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Still homeless, one year after the tsunami disaster, but some hope remains for the survivors. We'll take you live to Indonesia in moments. From the CNN Center this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING December 25, 8:00 a.m. her in Atlanta, 8:00 p.m. in Indonesia. Good morning everyone, I'm Tony Harris. Merry Christmas and thank you for being with us tomorrow -- this morning.

Tomorrow marks exactly one year since a tsunami swept across south Asia and swept away more than 200,000 people. Today, relatives and friends are gathered to member lost loved ones not even knowing if they're buried in mass graves or still missing. Atika Shubert helped lead our coverage the disaster, she joins us now by video phone from Indonesia's provincial capitol of Banda Aceh.

And Atika, good to see you again this morning. We talked last hour and let me ask you, what was it like when you landed and you had your first look around at the devastation that you knew existed, but seeing it firsthand with your own eyes, describe that for us?

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was absolute shock. Honestly, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. There was destruction everywhere, but worse was perhaps the fact that there were bodies everywhere. It was literally a city of death and destruction. The mosques behind me, for example, was standing -- you couldn't walk to the mosque without stepping on debris, without stepping over bodies. It was really a sight that was just too horrible to see. And the worst part was knowing that it wasn't just the city, it had happened all up and down Aceh's coast, more than about 250 kilometers or about 155 miles of this destruction up and down the coast. And really, it was impossible to fathom.

HARRIS: I have to ask you, I had a sense, and I have to admit it, I had a sense as we were watching that -- as I was here from this desk that morning, a year ago, that almost as soon as it happened, the clock was ticking, that relief had to get there in a hurry, and that there need to be a recovery effort in place as quickly as possible before the world's attention turned to the next disaster. How did the recovery effort unfold? Did it unfold in a timely and organized manner?

SHUBERT: Well, in the first few days -- you have to understand it was very isolated area of Indonesia, so for the first three days there really wasn't any help coming in. When we first landed we went to a hospital that was literally overflowing with those people that had been injured. The morgue was stuffed with bodies. It was an awful sight. And people were coming up to us and saying where is the help? Where are the Americans? Where is the help coming in? Finally, within the third or fourth day, the doors opened up and all of that overseas help started to pour in and that was a huge relief for people.

That emergency effort, without a doubt, was a success in the fact that all of this aid came pouring in and many lives were saved, none of those health disasters that so many people feared afterwards actually materialized so that part certainly has been a success.

Now, however, we're moving into the reconstruction phase, where people are saying, where's my home, how do I begin rebuilding my life, and in that sense, some people fared better than others. You know, a year later there are still 60,000 people living in tents and aide workers say that's unacceptable, they have to find some sort of temporary homes for these people to begin rebuilding their lives.

HARRIS: CNN's Atika Schubert. Atika, you did wonderful work for us last year in leading our coverage from that region and it's great to talk to you again one year on. Atika Schubert from Banda Aceh, Indonesia for us, thank you.

As the sun rises around the world, people are waking to Christmas day. In Rome Pope Benedict XVI celebrated his first Christmas mass as head of the Roman Catholic Church. Thousands of pilgrims later gathered in rain soaked St. Peter's Square to hear his message of peace. A first timer in Britain as well, prince Charles' new wife, Camilla, is joining the queen and the rest of the royal family for their annual Christmas day church outing.

In Iraq, Christmas goes to war. Soldiers gathered in song and prayer at a candlelight vigil at the Warrior Chapel. And just for fun, U.S. Army officers dressed a Humvee with lights and pulled it with soldier reindeer. This Merry Christmas Camp Victory style.

And President Bush called nine service members in regions from the Persian Gulf to the Far East to tell them he was thinking of them and their families on this Christmas day. The president has a lot more on his mind. The war in Iraq, high gas prices, and hurricane Katrina, made 2005 a particularly rough year for him. White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux looks at the challenges he faces.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While President Bush summed up the year this way.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This has been a year of strong progress toward a freer, more peaceful world, and a prosperous America.

MALVEAUX: Some political analysts have a dramatically different take.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: This was a grueling year for the president.

DAVID GERGEN, FMR. PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER: If you look at the year in total, it's been a bad one for him

MALVEAUX: Last November when President Bush seized the White House for a second term he declared his 51 percent win a mandate and projected an air of invisibility.

BUSH: I earned capital in the campaign, political capital, and now I intend to spend it.

MALVEAUX: Early on he did have a series of successes, with agreements on free trade, energy and transportation. But by mid-year, the center piece of his domestic agenda, social security reform, failed. As gas prices rose, Mr. Bush's approval numbers fell.

CINDY SHEEHAN, ANTI-WAR ACTIVIST: We, as Americans...

MALVEAUX: And during his normally quiet summer vacation, Mr. Bush didn't get a break. As protest mom Cindy Sheehan kept the heat on outside his Texas ranch, calling for U.S. troops to come home. Hurricane Katrina roared through the Gulf Coast, and overwhelmed the administration.

GERGEN: That really was a -- I think a moment of extreme disappointment for a lot of Americans.

MALVEAUX: In September, the president pushed through his new Supreme Court chief justice, but October brought more bad news: From Iraq, a grim milestone of 2,000 Americans dead. In Washington, the indictment and resignation of one of his top advisers Scooter Libby stemming from a CIA leak investigation. And at the White House, his Supreme Court pick Harriet Miers, forced to withdraw after conservatives pulled their support.

BROWNSTEIN: The president suffered an almost uninterrupted series of reversals and missteps in 2005.

MALVEAUX: Even overseas in November Mr. Bush was bombarded in South America and Asia with questions over his administration's positions on secret detention sites and torture.

GERGEN: A pattern of secrecy a pattern of perceived or alleged abuse that has really troubled an awful lot of Americans.

BUSH: Millions of people voted...

MALVEAUX: December's landmark elections in Iraq are now overshadowed by the controversy over whether Mr. Bush overstepped his bounds in authorizing a secret domestic spy program. Heading for the holidays Mr. Bush seemed to acknowledge the challenges ahead.

BUSH: We got a lot of work to do...

MALVEAUX: Political analysts say Mr. Bush is poised for a comeback.

GERGEN: We have a weakened president, but a president who's not on the ropes. He's -- there's plenty of fight left in this fellow.

BROWNSTEIN: Bloodied, but unbowed, they feel that they are in position to begin to recover in 2006.

MALVEAUX (voice-over): Part will be to win modest legislative victories and also get his Supreme Court pick confirmed. But both aides and political analysts agree, the wildcard will be Iraq.

Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: With the year almost behind him, President Bush and the rest of the first family are planning on a Christmas day lunch at Camp David in Maryland. Here's what's on the menu: Herb roasted free range turkey, corn bread dressing, mashed potatoes, green beans, and let's not forget desert, sweet potato souffle, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, pecan pie and red velvet cake.

And here are other stories makes news "Across America" this Christmas morning. A Texas woman who spent five years in prison in connection with her infant son's death is free this Christmas day. After an appeals court overturned her conviction the appeals court ruled the defense attorney representing 24-year-old Brandy Dell Briggs did a poor job. No word on whether prosecutors will retry the case.

Another shark attack to report, this one in the cold waters off the northern Oregon coast. The fire chief for Seaside, Oregon, says the surfer was bitten on the ankle and calf, he is recovering. The attack occurred yesterday. Witnesses say the shark was a 10 foot great white. It's Christmas in Bayou country. That means it's bonfire time along the Mississippi. Louisiana residents still shaken by Hurricane Katrina are finding happiness by tapping into this more than a century old holiday tradition. The fires light the way for Papa Noel, southern Louisiana Santa Claus.

From Christmas cookies to mom's famous apple pie, have you been stuffing your face this holiday season? Better slide back from a buffet table and walk it off. Coming up, tips to keep off those dreaded holiday pounds. Galen, good morning.

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: You're watching CNN SUNDAY MORNING on CNN, the news channel trusted more Americans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Still waiting for the perfect gift? Wait no more. Join us all day today for "King size Christmas." Starting at 9:00 a.m. Eastern, Larry goes one on one with Lance Armstrong and marathon continues with the Barbara Walters interview at 10:00 a.m.

(SINGING) Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Jack frost nipping at your nose. Yuletide...

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Time now to check in on top stories this Christmas morning. Camilla Dutch of Cornwall joining the royal family for their annual Christmas day church service. It's the first Christmas celebration for Charles and Camilla as husband and wife.

The coming New Year will be a little late by about a second to be exact. Organizers of the annual Times Square ball drop in New York City are having to accommodate for this year's leap year and accompanying leap second.

And the world renowned Boy's Choir of Harlem hits a sour note. It's looking for a new home, the financially troubled organization is millions of dollars in debt and is being evicted by New York City.

I wonder what the weather is like in New York City. That's a great place to bring in Christmas. Galen Crader is with us in the CNN Weather Center. Galen, good morning.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: All right, thank you.

Anxious about gaining those extra holiday pounds? Coming up next, tips for those who want to keep their buttons from bursting and then the -- look. How can you resist? You want to sort of beat this battle of the bulge during the holidays? Stay with us, we've got a special guest for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi I'm Specialist Emile Schanard (ph) from Camp (INAUDIBLE), Iraq and I'd like to say happy holidays to Jasmine, Jahalan (ph), and Lasonda Norris in Desoto, Texas.

SPECIALIST MATTHEW PEREZ, U.S. ARMY: from Stonewall, Texas, here with the 101st Airborne Division, 1st BCT (ph). I'd like to give a shout out to my family and friends back in Texas. Love you all. Take care.

SERGEANT 1ST LASS BARBARA PERRY, U.S. ARMY: Hello, I'd like to say happy holidays to all from Texas, greetings from Camp (INAUDIBLE), Iraq. My name is Sergeant 1st lass Barbara Perry and happy holidays.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Christmas gifts can come in many forms and today we have a wonderfully diverse collection for the season of giving. Tears of joy flow this morning at Fort Lewis in Washington state. Look at this, dozens of U.S. soldiers reunited just in time for Christmas. Sixty-seven members of the 551st Medical Logistics Company returned from deployment to Kuwait and Qatar. They were there providing supplies and gear for earthquake recovery work in Pakistan.

A New Jersey woman is enjoying her life saving Christmas gift today, she's recovering from a kidney operation. And listen to this, the kidney donated by a Navy petty officers once one of her foster children. He says he wanted to give something back.

And this man is the closest thing North Carolina may have to Santa Claus. For more than 30 years Jimmy Murphy has been delivering hot meals, toys, and clothing to the needy in his town on Christmas. Murphy says he does it because he remembers growing up during the depression and what it was like to have slim pickings on Christmas. Wow.

The holiday season brings gifts and family gatherings to be sure, but it also delivers ham, turkey, stuffing, and enough leftovers to last a lifetime. Anxious about packing on the pounds? Well, we got some tips for you. Things are going to get a little whacky. Joining us from Los Angeles, for the skinny on holiday weight gain, professional trainer Jerry Anderson.

Jerry, ready to pump me up, huh?

JERRY ANDERSON, PROFESSIONAL TRAINER: Yeah. Merry Christmas, Tony. Here to pump you up, baby. I'll saw your show on trimming the fat. It's show time.

HARRIS: It's show time. Jerry, good to see you. Thanks for getting up. All right, here's the thing.

ANDERSON: My pleasure.

HARRIS: You was helping Santa this morning? You need to work with Santa a little. He's packing on the LBs (INAUDIBLE) and trying to get down that chimney with the bags and the gifts and everything is little tough. I mea, we do pack on the pounds, you know, around this time of the year, starting just before thanksgiving.

ANDERSON: Yeah. Oh man.

HARRIS: Through Christmas and New Years.

ANDERSON: Yeah. We get started, man. You know, know and it actually starts at -- starts at Halloween. We get started at Halloween...

HARRIS: At Halloween?

ANDERSON: Yeah. People start putting it on early, Tony. They don't just start today and Thanksgiving. This thing -- the snowball was going a long time ago, man.

HARRIS: Well, here's the thing, you can't make us -- you're not here to make us feel guilty about the fact we do this, are you?

ANDERSON: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

HARRIS: Oh, you are?

ANDERSON: Just a little bit. I want you to feel a little bit so when you go for it. Be, we're going to get with the fitness tips for that Christmas day. First one, yeah, this one is critical, everybody work the floor, not the buffet.

HARRIS: What does that mean?

ANDERSON: Yeah, work the floor. Instead of, most people when they get to the Christmas party the first thing they do, bam, they plop right down at the table. I don't want you to do that. I want you to work the floor, not the buffet. Get yourself a small plate, put a little bit everything on it and then move away from the table.

HARRIS: Push away from the table.

ANDERSON: Yes.

ANDERSON: OK, tip two, I like this, don't save your calories. Explain that to us. A lot of us do this.

ANDERSON: Yeah, because, a lot of people, even right now, they're starting to save their calories, they're not going to eat this morning, not going to eat at lunch, and then they going to eat big at night. People, you know what happens, they always do, is they eat three days worth of food in one meal.

HARRIS: Right, right, right.

ANDERSON: And it's very dangerous. Just the other day at the gym, this was amazing, this lady was working out and she passed out. She was trying to save her calories for two days so she could eat more on Christmas. See, yeah the nutritional needs that you had on Christmas Eve are the same one you have on Christmas. Don't save your calories, nourish your body properly so that holiday don't turn into a May Day!

HARRIS: And this next one, I really don't understand this one. You must be out of your mind here. You say, "flip your cocktails with water." Why on earth would I want to do that?

ANDERSON: yeah, flip flop your cocktails with H2O, baby. Here's the thing. Every time you have a cocktail, flip it with a glass of water. And this is what happens, Tony, is so great, it'll stop you from becoming dehydrated, intoxicated, and save you calories. You know what? These guys tell you, Jerry, on Christmas sometimes I have a little too many cocktails, I pass out. Well, flip flopping will stop it.

HARRIS: OK, now we've had the meal.

ANDERSON: Yes.

HARRIS: And, you know, there are all these deserts lining the tables as well. You're telling us to -- before we dig in, maybe walk some of this off? Huh?

ANDERSON: Oh, yeah. I want you to walk it off to stimulate your metabolism. After your big meal, wait about 45 minutes and then get the whole family to take a nice little walk around the neighborhood, stimulate your metabolism and get your body into a fat burning mode, because we got to do a little walking and talking. Everything's thinking about food. You know and we got to learn how to do two things at once, Tony, it's important. Even in Las Vegas, they're picking up on this. Some of the casinos have attached a recumbent bike -- you know that one, you sit down and pedal?

HARRIS: Right, right, right, right.

ANDERSON: To the slot machines, so you can lose money and weight at the same time, man!

HARRIS: All right, all right, Jerry, I got to get to this last one before we run out of time. What is this? Go skinny dipping?

ANDERSON: Go skinny dipping, baby, yes! I know, taking off your clothes and getting in the raw. Here's the thing, when you want to get to those pastries and you're really hungry, get a little bit on a saucer, then when you go to round two, go skinny dipping. Get some raw vegetables and dip into some low fat dressing...

HARRIS: Beautiful.

ANDERSON: That'll save you from 500 to 2,000 calories a day. Bam! That's the skinny dipping I want you to do, Tony.

HARRIS: I love it. I love it. I love it. Thank you for being with us. Merry Christmas to you, Jerry. Have a great 2006.

ANDERSON: My pleasure. Merry Christmas.

HARRIS: Yes, this was fun. Thank you sir, all right.

ANDERSON: All right.

HARRIS: And starting at 9:00 a.m. Eastern here on CNN, a "King Size Christmas." Larry King goes one on one with Lance Armstrong, Barbara Walters and others. And "House Call" is coming up next. Elizabeth Cohen now is here with a preview.

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