I didn't go for a walk today, except down to midnight mass at 7.00pm and walked back as well. Actually we left the house about 6.20 just to be sure of getting a seat. A real Irish mammy thing that; "there is no point in going to mass if you can't get a seat". I was a bit startled coming into the church. I'd forgotten about the fire and had to spend the next hour inhaling the fumes of a burnt crib. My sinuses went mad for the next few hours.
It made this Christmas just that bit different. I kind of imagine that the original Christmas must have smelled a bit smokey too. I'd feel pretty sure that they had a fire in the shed to keep the baby warm. Only they would have had the added smell of animal dung, while for us in Wicklow in 2012, it was the smell of cheap aftershave and channel no 5.
Anyhow, it was good to see everyone there in their fine winter woollies. This time of the year is a pretty common time for celebrations. Mostly around the mid winter concept and the expectation of better and brighter days ahead. I think that concept is still pretty much around these days, only with less true community spirit.
You'll find pockets of Christmas spirit around, but in general it seems to be about spending. Even it these times of tough austerity, there is still a commercial pressure on people to spend and the more ostentatiously the better. The more kilowatts of lights on the house, the better. The more cards and presents the better, it's all about marketing and show, where the original winter or Christmas celebration was all about community coming together.
We spent a fair bit of the day connecting up with friends, so that made the day fly in. I hope to catch up with family over the next few days.
The Roman Catholics of Wicklow now smell like they were at a traditional mid winter celebration around the bonfire. The rest of Wicklow just smell of mulled wine and mince pies, how boring.
No comments:
Post a Comment