Tragedy and misfortune seem to be amplified the nearer they are to the Christmas season. Our reaction to news of the darkest kind at this time of year centres on the ruination of the occasion, the absence of friends, the destruction of memories and the fact that it careers into the path of a season that is ostensibly presented as one of joy and familial togetherness.
In Galway and the west this week, that image has been well and truly shattered by a series of tragedies that has ripped at the heartstrings of the entire community. Locally this week, it is hard not to be affected by all that has gone on; one would have to be made of ice not to be moved by the sadness emanating from the tragedies that have happened in the region every day for the last five. Our hearts feel like they have been torn out at the seemingly never-ending stream of death and injury that has come our way in the past week.
Deaths and young deaths are particularly had to accept. Lives of those who have not yet had the chance to grow and learn have come to an end. Communities torn apart by grief but united by support. Families in disbelief and shock. And then there are other families who are aware that tragedy may be just around the corner. We think in particular of the Bugler family from Clare who at time of going to press are still hoping that they can find their son Michael, a student in Galway, who has not been seen for more than five days.
And all of this in Christmas week. A strange juxtaposition of sadness and joy; of colour and grey; of guilt at celebrating when others are not; at the realisation that there are many empty seats at tables, gifts left unopened, and of the perceived present becoming the past.
A pall has fallen across many communities over the last few days. The utter senselessness of death has been visited upon communities. I do not know any of the families involved in any of last week’s tragedies, yet I found my every thought distorted by grief. If ever a need for perspective was felt, then the plight of communities and families and friends in Ballinderreen, Kilcolgan, Loughrea, Glencorrib, Ennis, Headford, Claremorris and so on was enough to make us realise the importance of life and love this Christmas. We can but just imagine the horror they are all going through. Just last evening, word has come through of a mother and daughter lost in an accident in Fermoy.
We all place ourselves in the minds of those most affected, not in a “there but for the grace of God” sort of way, but in a way that says we would do all we could if we could make it right. If we could turn back time.
Tragedy is never easy, no matter what the time of year. Far from Christmas making it all the less palatable, it is perhaps the season when we should be the most generous with our thoughts and support for those whose lives have been. Think of them this Christmas, do what you can to help, and embrace life.
— On behalf of the management and staff of the Galway Advertiser and its sister newspapers around the country, we wish you a very happy and fulfilling Christmas. We thank you for your loyalty and for allowing us the opportunity to inform, entertain, and, no doubt, occasionally infuriate you over the past year. We thank you too for your comments, both for and against our commitment to allow as many diverse voices as possible to be heard through our pages and on our increasingly popular Facebook and Twitter facilities. This spring the Galway Advertiser turns 46 in the business of connecting readers, stories, businesses. We love what we do and we look forward to next year and beyond and remaining Galway’s favourite and most widely read newspaper, online and offline.
Thar cheann an Galway Advertiser gach dea ghuí i gcomhair na Nollag agus na hathbhliana.
