Beyond the fake snow and glitter Christmas hope shines through

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Christmas draws nearer and politicians gather to sing for a better Ireland. In the midst of the difficulties of life in Ireland, Christmas may bring a much needed glitter of hope.

This weekend our politicians gathered together to record what they hope to be Ireland’s Christmas number one. This is not an attempt to sing their way back into our favour but to raise much needed funds and awareness for suicide in Ireland.  

As the Christmas period is almost upon us this endeavour reminds us that Christmas can be a particularly hard time for people. Physically the weather is difficult for all especially the elderly. Yet beyond the harsher winters we’re experiencing, emotions are heighted at Christmas time. Joy, excitement, love but also sadness, loneliness and grief come to the forefront at emotional times like Christmas. It is estimated that over the Christmas period the Samaritans will take a call every six seconds. "It's a difficult time, especially for those who have lost someone close, for the elderly living alone and for people living far away form their own families, including those working here from abroad", according to a spokesperson for the charity.

However, a recent study has shown that perhaps Christmas is in fact a hopeful time. The comprehensive study analysing Irish suicide rates, spanning over 20 years, has found that December has the lowest suicide rate of all months. While the seasonal effect on suicide rates has been much debated perhaps there is more to Christmas than commercialism.


Is it possible that under the garish advertising there is still something about Christmas that lifts the human spirit for even a fleeting moment?

We are bombarded by movies, programmes, music and advertisements pushing a picture perfect Christmas, so far from reality they are almost laughable. A happy family ice skate their way across a frozen lake; against all odds long lost loved ones make it home just in time for Christmas; and kids catch Santa putting presents under the tree. Pure. Marketing. Magic.

 At times it’s too much for even the most die-hard Christmas fan but if we strip away all the glitter and fake snow more often than not the Christmas miracle isn’t a result of Santa’s magical elves. When it comes down to it the magic of Christmas is a human creation.

Christmas is a time when many people go that extra mile. For some a Christmas miracle is turning out a delicious homemade pudding prepared and cooked during the weeks building up to the big day; visiting an elderly relative; or catching up with a school friend who they haven’t seen in ten years.

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Eleven months of the year life is lonely and isolated for so many people. Christmas is no different but at some level the barriers we put around ourselves are reduced. We identify with each other on a local and national scale through the shared experience of Christmas

Making visits to family and neighbours is a ritual which is rapidly disappearing from Irish culture. In the past visiting was a huge part of the daily and weekly routine for people. Whether that meant keeping an eye on an elderly neighbour, or bringing kids to see their cousins, it just doesn’t happen as often today. Yet at Christmas without fail people will put a tin of roses in a Christmas bag and make the connection which there is “no time” for during the rest of the year.

Gift giving dominates the Christmas agenda. There is much criticism of consumer culture around Christmas. Conor Pope gave five tips on having a cheaper Christmas on Today FM recently. His final tip included ringing a friend and saying “Let’s not buy each other Christmas presents this year”. While cost saving measures most definitely need to be advocated this is an example of extreme Scrooge-itis.

Instead of stamping out gift giving altogether it might be beneficial to advocate supporting local businesses in the process of finding just the right gift for a loved one this Christmas.

So many Irish people are taking the bad economic circumstances by the antlers and setting up stalls in farmers markets. The Christmas market scene in Ireland is growing. From Galway to Dublin to Cork and everywhere in between Christmas markets will be firmly in place this year. While in affluent times a trip to Dublin on a shopping spree was the norm, just because times have changed it doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy a Christmas spend. Instead of hitting the high street for all Christmas needs, gather friends or family or just yourself and soak up the Christmas markets. Warm up with a hot chocolate or mulled wine and find unique stocking fillers while supporting local artisans.

“The gift is in the giving” may be a cliché but every year you hear people saying things like “I just love giving presents” or “I can’t wait to see the kids’ faces light up”. Giving gifts brings us a feel good factor on a scale we don’t experience at any other time. Giving is in our nature and at Christmas we get to use gift giving as a gesture of kindness to those around us from a co-worker to a lover.

We use Santa Claus as a ruse to spoil children we love and extend the process into adulthood with the exchange of secret Santa gifts or simply the open exchange on Christmas morning.

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Like it or not Christmas brings out a little magic and little miracles do exist. Maybe not the flying with Santa and his reindeer’s Hollywood style miracle but more the miracle of connecting with an old friend or finally getting the Christmas lights untangled after five pain staking hours while four children eagerly trawl through a cardboard box for last year’s shiny red tinsel.

So this year whether it’s giving a piece of Christmas cake to the man next door; singing your heart out in the Christmas choir; or against all odds getting home to see family on Christmas Day, go that extra mile. You never know the uplifting effect it might have.