The Christmas Card

The month of December can often be wet and cold and the sky can be grey with very little sunshine. Thoughts of the commercial side of Christmas in this current economical downturn does not do much for the human sprit. The arrival of Christmas cards with the comforting thought of relatives and friends thinking about us and wishing us a happy and a holy Christmas, can often be uplifting.

Certainly when I was a child and I am talking about a time before television and glossy magazines, the arrival of the Christmas cards was an exciting time. They came from Canada, London, USA and Dublin. From towns, villages, country lanes, convents and monasteries and they were all different and beautifully coloured and embossed, sprinkled with sugar-like glitter. My mother would tie a string across the wall about the mantle piece and the cards would be spread out in view of everyone, and visitors over the Christmas period would take time to read them.

One card in particular I remember, was a scene of a covered mountain with a small boy and a man who I can only assume was his father, dragging a Christmas tree to a log cabin, where his mother and sister were waiting at the door. I can’t remember the rhyme on the card or who it was that sent it, but I was enchanted by this particular card and kept it for some time after. Like the snow that year it disappeared, but I know some people who have kept particular cards for years, perhaps maybe it was a dear friend or a close relative who sent it.

Whatever the reason it is a lovely way to remember. My wife has a Christmas card that her father sent to his mother from the battlefields of France during the second world war, it is a simple card more like a postcard picturing the baby Jesus. Little did that 17 year old soldier realise when he posted that Christmas card home, that years later it would be a family treasure.

I often think that Christmas cards tell a story, not only of Christmas but also of the sender. The most generous and caring person sends a more meaningful card both in image and rhyme, and for less thoughtful and not so caring this is also reflected in their choice of card. When I was young, a game I would play was to try and work out who sent the cards just by looking at the picture and not reading the name of the sender, and it would work most of the time. Of course now that I am older and wiser, I do realise that it’s the thought that counts and not what kind of card it is. Having said that we now live in a time when we have to be careful about what kind of Christmas card we send because of political correctness, so that we don’t offend others. A recent survey in a newspaper showed that only one percent of Christmas cards have images like the Nativity.

It may be wise for us to look at the very first Christmas card that was made by J.C. Horsley in 1846 in London. It shows an image of a family having a meal and on either side of this is an image of the poor being fed and clothed. After all, isn’t that what Christmas is all about. My mother would send a lot of Christmas cards and in return she would receive a lot, and always stressed the importance of having happy New Year on the card. Sadly, when she passed away in 2003 we sent no cards that year nor did we send cards five years earlier when my Father died, for that is the custom in that part of the country. Now the remainder of our family manage to keep up the tradition and it is often the case that it is the only contact we have with each other during the year.

Maybe there is someone you know that hasn’t been in contact with you in a long time. Why don’t you send a Christmas card this year, and who knows it may lift their spirits, and they may treasure the card for years to come.

Happy Christmas. Oh yes, nearly forgot, Happy New Year.

Tom

The Mad Alcoholic in Person

I won’t bother telling you how I got into my drinking and where and how it all got out of control, but like thousands of others drinkers it controlled me, my life, family, work, thoughts, everything I did and tried to do. It became the master and I became the slave. I quite literally lived to drink and get drunk whenever I could, and when I had no money to get beer I would beg, steel or scrounged it off my brother or father. I would ask the devil if I had to but when I started to rob my wife’s purse and take the kids’ money I knew it had to stop.

In 1996 I knew that alcohol had a hold on me but like most alcoholics we have to be brought to our knees or as we say in the rooms, hit rock bottom. It took me until 2002 to know I was in trouble from drink. I went to my first AA meeting that same year; I thought it was the greatest load of rubbish that I ever experienced in my life. It made no sense me. Being a know all, I never gave it a chance and for six long years I was a dry drunk, a complete and utter sham, I could look at everything and see nothing, I could listen to everything and hear nothing, it was worst than being an active alcoholic. I was to learn later at the expense of my wife and kids.

In 2008 I went back into the rooms of AA and I can safely say it was the best move I have made in my mad life. Alcohol addiction is only the tip of my problems, I drank to get out of this world to escape life’s reality like all Alcoholics. A place to hide. Today life is OK for me, there are internal and external issues. Every day problems like everyone else and personal problems I have to cope with but through the rooms of AA and its members and my higher power I am getting there. One day at a time.

Brendan

In the Garden

I work in the garden in Glengoole.

Eamon Corbett is the man in charge.

Last spring we planted onions and lettuce.

We sowed peas.

We did a lot of weeding.

We had good crops. They tasted great.

by Pat P.

My Dream

My dream would be to work in the centre in Glengoole. I would like to help the staff. I would like to join a painting class.

This is a happy centre. I look forward to coming to work.

by Bernadette D.

Trip to Dublin

On Tuesday, 17th November, the Men’s Group from Rehab Care went on a trip to Dublin.

Ailish collected me at my house at 7am. We drove to Thurles to take the train to Dublin. We had our travel pass for the journey.

We arrived at Heuston Station at 10am. We got the Luas to O’ Connell Street. We got the bus to Croke Park. The guide brought us on a tour of the grounds and dressing rooms and function room.

We visited the Dáil. We were in the gallery. We had the Taoiseach speaking. We met Mattie McGrath.

We got the train back to Thurles. Ailish drove me home to Clonmel. It was a happy day.

Ray

My Journey Back to Education

I left school early and went out working. After a while I was looking to get back to Education so I saw notice in my local library and carried on from there. My first day going there I was a bit nervous because I did not know who my tutor was but when I got there and my tutor welcomed me I knew I was going to like it. I jumped in at the deep end at first because it was leaving cert class but I decided not do it but I learnt a lot about poetry. The following year I decided to start at the beginning and I really learnt a lot. There were a lot of barriers to break but I overcame them because I was determined to get there. I also did the English Speaking Board course and drama which was a bit of fun. I also was the student on Learning by the Air Waves which was the first in Europe. I really like the adult groups because you can never stop learning because it is ongoing.

My advice to students is to keep at it and go at your own pace because it is not race against time.

Tony

Book Review: Not Just for Christmas

Book Title: Not Just for Christmas

Author: Roddy Doyle

What is the book about?

It’s about two brothers who haven’t met each other in more than twenty years.

Describe the main character?

Danny, the younger brother would seem to have a chip on his shoulder with his brother.

Why did Jimmy leave?

Danny caught Jimmy kissing his girlfriend and this made him mad.

Did you like the book?

It was a good story about their young lives and you were waiting to find out why they were not talking.

P.J. Slater

My Favourite TV Programme

I like The Bill. It is a detective programme. There are two episodes every week. It is shown at 5pm. It is an English programme. It shows how the police work on real life cases. The police carry guns. The police cars are white with yellow stripes. The police carry walkie talkies. Their uniforms are black with white or blue shirts. The police women wear hats and the men wear peaked hats. Small offices in the station are very busy with lots of phones ringing. There are lots of maps & files. I look forward to every episode.

Anon.

Springtime is around the corner

Springtime is a lovely time of year. The mornings are brighter and the evenings are getting longer. Fields are greener, the trees and hedgerows are growing new foliage. To add to all this, the white snowdrops and beautiful yellow daffodils are beginning to show. They are a lovely sight in front of my door and down the avenue. It would give you great heart to go out and enjoy the lovely spring air.

Most people are beginning to spring clean their homes, cut their lawns, painting and wall papering and many more tasks. How joyful it is to see the lovely spring lambs in the fields. A real sign of Spring. Farmers are out ploughing the fields for tillage and getting the ground ready for root crop.

At this time of year it’s lovely to look forward to Spring.

Ellen

Trip to Limerick

We are going to Limerick on the 2^nd of December. This is our Christmas shopping trip. I am saving every week to buy presents. I do like going Christmas shopping. I would like to get clothes for Christmas. I would like to get party clothes. My favourite colour is red.

A.M.L.

My Holiday this year

This year I went to Lanzarote. I went to the pub every day and I went for a walk. I loved the beautiful scenery and we did lots of shopping. It was very sunny and 44 degrees. I often think of those sunny days when we have rain at home.

T. Hanley

My Favourite Hobby.

I like going for walks in the evening. I used to like going to the gym but I don’t go there at the moment. I might go back at some stage.

I like watching television and I like programmes like Fringe and Desperate Housewives and I like animation cartoons.

My Story

It is a good feeling to be able to sit down and read a story to my children. All thanks to South Tipperary VEC, Adult Learning Scheme.

When I went to school and couldn’t keep up you would be left at the back of the class and nobody cared. Now things got better and that fear that I felt has gone.

It is great that I can sit down & help my children with their homework. All thanks to everybody at the Scheme.

Tony R.

Learning

Hello, my name is Liam. I left school when I was 13, I was very badly able to read and write.

I started back to learning a few years ago and I’m now doing well. My reading and writing have got very good and my spelling is improving.

We are now starting to learn to use the computer. I am very interested in that. I would like to thank my tutor and my class mates for their help and support.

Liam

A Trip to Belfast

We travelled by car to Belfast. It took four hours to get there. My first thought was that it was a lovely city. When we arrived at the hotel we had a rest for a while. Then we went for a walk around the city. The next day we went on the political tour of the Shankill Road and the Fall’s Road. It was very interesting. We looked at the houses in the Shankill area and the paintings on the walls of the houses. There was one painting of Cromwell. There was on place in Ireland he couldn’t take... and that was Clonmel!

Then we went to the Fall’s Road where we saw the Sinn Féín office. On the side of the building there was a painting of Bobby Sands, who died on hunger strike during the troubles. You would want to go to Belfast to appreciate it.

Pat.

Book Review: Marley and Me

My name: Lisa

Book Title: Marley & Me

Author: John Grogan

What is the book about?

The book is based on a true story and shows love life and sadness. John & Jenny Grogan embark on a beautiful journey with their beloved dog Marley.

Describe the main character:

The main characters are John and his dog Marley.

Describe the main problem or conflict the characters have to solve:

Marley gets into a lot of mischief and trouble such as when John & Jenny take Marley to be neutered. He tries to make his escape while the car is moving.

Tell whether you liked or didn't like the book. Give 3 reasons:

I enjoyed the book.

1. It was very moving.

2. It was funny in some places.

3. I learned a lot about Labrador dogs.

Christmas 2009

Christmas will not be the same without our Dad.

Our Dad died on the 29^th March, 2009.

We'll miss Dad for Christmas. We are not looking forward to Christmas. It will not be the same without our Dad.

He died in hospital in Clonmel.

Mary Kelleher

Why I like Christmas

Christmas is a time for family and friends. It is a time to get together as a family. We give each other presents and have some fun. At our Christmas parties we have a very good time. Christmas can also be a sad time for families, when a member of the family has passed away around this time of year. I love being on holidays for a week or two, to have time with my family and friends. I enjoy going shopping to buy presents and getting new clothes to wear on Christmas Day. I love that Christmas is here again because I’m going to spend some time with my Mum and family.

Catherine.

The Story of the little wren

I just got a little information about the wren from my brother Denis. On Holy Thursday when our Lord was praying in the garden of Gethsemane, with the Apostles, our Lord said to Peter "keep awake and watch one hour for me".
When the soldiers came to arrest our Lord, Peter was asleep, the little Wren flew from its nest and landed on Peter’s shoulder. Peter awoke. The soldiers asked Peter where our Lord was and Peter denied our Lord three times. Then they cut off his ear, and that is why the festival of following the wren takes place. Believe.

Anon.

Learning to Learn

LEARING TO LEARN

Our ability to learn depends a lot on how we plan our time. These days people find it hard to make time for family, work and study, we can sometimes find it hard to find time to call our own.

When we do find time to study, staring at a blank page can be very off putting; what will we write, how will we begin?

We sometimes have so many things on our minds that we admit defeat even before we start. We can sometimes worry so much about studying even when we can find time, we just can’t concentrate on what we should be doing. This can be very frustrating and we start to question why are we doing this, what are we putting our self through this for.

When this happens the best thing to do is leave what you are doing and do something different for a while. It's also very important try to create a good environment for studying.

This should include a quiet room that is free from interruptions.

We can sometimes dwell too much on past experiences, this includes some childhood memories, our spelling ability and making mistakes in punctuation .

Trying to keep yourself focussed on the task and hoping that other people can understand what you are writing about.

It is also very worrying that what you write might make you look stupid to other people.This can make it very hard to maintain confidents in your self.

When we start doubting our abilities studying anything becomes next to impossible.These factors can affect us so much that we end up where we started: staring at a blank page.

We should always try to remember learning should be enjoyable, using the knowledge we already have, can be a good place to start.

When we apply ourselves we might be surprised by what we already know, we should take responsibility for our own learning. We are then ready to begin learning, it is possible then to set goals and achieve what ever we set out to do.

Very soon we might see that learning is not as problematic as we might think and can be a fascinating journey to embark on. Another way of problem solving is we should always source as much material as possible on the subject we are studying.

With this material to hand, we can start to organize our study time and evaluate the sourced material into what we regard as important and what we should disregard.

Our willingness to learn can be greatly enhanced when we have a good basis to start from, by trying to understand the problems then we can begin to solve them. Every time we do this we are one step nearer to achieving the goals we set for our self.

By putting systems for learning in place any task we set our self’s will become easier, when we work within a structure we see how things fit into place and one thing can flow into another.

Noel

Fishing as a young boy

Fishing as a young boy

When I was young we hadn’t much money. If you hadn’t the money in the middle of the week you had to wait till the weekend for your pocket money. On Saturday I’d go over to Paddy Cavanagh’s in Gladstone St. For 2 shillings worth of brown line, 1 shillings worth of nylon gut, and 6 penny hooks. Then it was down to the bank of the river in what was then known as the barley field (now the Dennis Burk park) I would find a bit of a stick from a tree and tie the line on to the top of the stick, then you tied the gut to the line, a hook to the gut and put a worm on the hook. You’d hold the stick with one hand and throw the line out into the river with the other hand as far as you could and wait for the fish to bite. It was better when there was a flood in the river if you were lucky you might get a bite quick. When you got a bite you’d jerk the stick back towards you, if not you’d have to wait.

I caught a lot more with line tied on to sticks than I ever did with a fancy rod. We also made our own rods. I’d go up to Lowry’s hardware store in Gladstone St. and buy a bamboo cane and cut up an old clothes hanger into strips and bend them in to the shape of the rod ,to hold them on you could tape them.

My father worked in J.L. O’Brien’s mineral waters and he used to get me some ring seals off the corks of bottles. I would slide them up along the bamboo cane on to the wire eyes to hold them. It was a fancy rod and we caught trout, flat fish, (now as fluke) and eels.

One day when we were fishing in the barley field there were other boys fishing on the other bank on the town side. They were shouting and running around the place and we could see something splashing in the water, we thought it was a dog. The boys came running across the bridge to us they told us that there was a boy in the water. We dropped our rods and ran across to where they were. Just as we got there we could see the boy going under the bridge by then it was two late he disappeared under the water. The body was found 9 days later R.I.P. I will never forget it.

In the summer time we’d go swimming in the river at the barley field. A lot of Clonmel people learnt to swim there. It was low nearer to the bridge a bit futher up was the deeper part. One day a girl named Ann dived off the bank and stuck her head in the muck bank in the river. We all had a great laugh at her we had to pull her out feet first I remember one year the river was so low that we were able to walk across to the steps at the Allen Larkin monument.

Some days we’d go out to the centre arch of the bridge after lamper eels. We’d tie a fork to a stick. People say that they stick to your toe and suck the blood out, we were scared but it was fun at the same time, then we’d walk out under the centre arch to the other side where there was a bank of stones which are still there.

There was a man named Paddy who lived over in Kickham Park, Paddy was a great man for bobbing for eels, he had a 10 ft pole with a length of string tied on to it, on the end was a ball of worms sown together, he would dip the worms in the water when he taught he caught some eels he would lift the pole real fast over his shoulder the eels would fall off and hit the gas works wall behind him now know as Bridge Water House.

In the summer evenings we might cycle down to the river Anner to Two Mile Bridge. When we’d get fed up it was in for a swim, the water was lovely cool and clean. Sometimes we might go skinny dipping it might be 9pm or 10pm before we’d get home. Then the questions were asked, where were you all night? If you told the truth you might not be left out the next night so you told a lie.

By Anthony Phelan.

9-11-09

A Christmas Story

12/11/09.

My Christmas Story By Anne.

I loved Christmas when I was a child. I'm going to tell a story about one Christmas that will always stay in my mind. I was about seven years old at the time. I loved looking at the shop windows at Christmas time, Burks shop was beautiful they always decorated it well and had lovely toys to look at.
But Ryan's shop across the road had this lovely play cooker in the window that I fell in love with and I would love Santa to bring it to me for Christmas.

I knew at the back of my mind that mam would not be able to afford the deposit, you would have to give a dopiest to the shop keeper to hold on to the gift for Santa to collect it. Every evening after school I would look in at the window and just imagine playing with that cooker. When I saw it first I ran home to Mam, told her about the cooker, I said to her I would love Santa to bring me that cooker in Ryan's shop. Mam said if Santa can afford it Anne, and you are a very good girl, he might bring it to you.

Day's and weeks passed and I would be looking at the window to see if the cooker was still there. It got near Christmas and the cooker had disappeared from the window, it left me wondering if I was going to get it or not. Christmas Eve came and that night we all had a bath, but before we went to bed, we would hang our socks over the fire place, for Santa to put a surprise into them, we would hardly sleep with excitement.

Christmas morning arrived and we could not wait to see what Santa brought us. My sister Alice got what she asked for, I saw a big parcel under the Christmas tree. I could not wait to open it, and when I did Santa had brought the cooker to me, I jumped for joy. I played with that cooker all day long. It was like a little kitchen to me, it had a sink with a water tank, two taps and the water came out of it, there was an oven and inside it had a tray and a mock turkey on it. O it was the best Christmas I ever had. We looked to see what Santa left in our stockings, apples oranges and small doll’s.

After dinner we would go outside to see what our friends had got. They always got more than us, but we would pretend we got more and we told them we left our other toys inside. Our Dad died when we were very young, and we would not have as much as our friends. But I always say that we had plenty, because Mam kept us together she did a great job. We never had turkey for Christmas Mam could only afford chicken and our friends would boast about the beautiful turkey they had, and we would do the same, because we would never tell them what we really had.

They were hard times but we got through it. I played with that cooker and brought my friends in to the house to play with it, we had great fun playing with it. Thanks to Santa and Mum for giving me that lovely cooker. It will always stay in my mind, that wonderful Christmas.

The day after Christmas was called Saint Stephen's Day, we had great fun going around in the wren .We would dress up in old clothes and wear a mask, so that people would not recognize us. The were four of us, and we would start out early, singing Christmas songs and we would go from door to door, hoping we get some money for our singing. Back then we got very bad winter's snow and frost and it was very cold. At dinner time we would come home, warm ourselves up, get something to eat and go back out again, we would stay out until evening time, around five it would be dark, so we would have to come home then. The four of us would go to our house to count the money, and share it between us, we would have enough money for the week. We had great fun in those days, I don't see anybody going out in the wren now, I hope it comes back.

I do hope ye like my short story about Christmas.

Merry Christmas to all, best wishes for 2010.

Regards Anne.

The Rag Man

The Rag Man

13 /3/09

I remember as a child the rag man calling round to our street, there was great excitement in those days, when the rag man called.
We would have to get a rag from our mothers and even at that rags were scarce.

I remember begging Mammy for a rag, you would be very lucky to get one,
because in those days they had to hold on to them to patch sheets together.

So I got my rag, a small one, the bigger the rag the bigger the toy, the smaller the rag the smaller the toy. I can remember the rag man the first time he called around to our street.
I think he had a horse and cart, it was a little wagon, the wagon was covered over
with green canvas.

We would go over to the rag man with our rags, he would roll the canvas back,
and then we could see what toys he had. I was always the one to get a small toy,
but we all shared our toys when the rag man left.
As far back as I can remember, the rag mans wagon contained spinning tops, whistles, marbles and dolls, and we played for hours with those lovely toys.

Later on the rag man had a little truck, with all the same toys.
I just don’t know what happened to the rag man, he stopped coming to our street and that was the end of our toys and the rag man.

God Bless that Rag Man.

He made us very happy, and he will always stay in my mind .

That Lovely Rag Man.

Ann