As I reflect on all my Christmas holidays growing up as a child, each one holds a special memory of family, friends and tradition, but the one that is paramount in my mind was the holiday my husband and I spent in Ireland in 1999.

After spending a few days in the Dublin area, we drove over to the West of Ireland, as the Irish say, to the beautiful Connamara and Salt Hill area of Galway. As we settled in, and exposed ourselves to the many attractions and villages, we could begin to see some of the traditions and customs the Irish held dear to them during the Christmas season. It was very apparent to us their priorities seemed to be in place since church was their main focus.

In a small village outside Galway, we witnessed an Irish lady wrestling with a Christmas tree she had just purchased, and who was attempting to place it inside her small automobile. This tree was tall but sparse and one of the most humble ones I had ever seen. I could not imagine it having more than a couple of ornaments after completely decorated and attached to the few branches it possessed. Her strong determination to get this tree home was an expression of her true Christmas Spirit!

Since Killarney is home to our Donahue clan, we headed south where we had rented a villa over looking the Lakes of Killarney to call home for our vacation, and for our Christmas holiday.

That particular year, it was very windy, and cold in Killarney; typical of the weather that comes in from the North Atlantic and off the Irish Sea during the winter months. The wind gust was almost unbearable at times, but after a few days of endurance, we soon felt like one of the weathered natives of Killarney.

The people in Killarney seemed to share the same sacred priorities as those of the West, and the tradition that is known throughout much of the world was that of the Christmas carolers on the street corner entertaining the last minute shoppers.

The night before Christmas Eve, Pat and I attended a tree lightning ceremony at the beautiful Cathedral of St. Mary's. This particular night the large tree in front of the church entrance was to be illuminated, but until we were in the church and witnessed the service by the Bishop of Kerry and the other church dignitaries we had no idea the significance of the lightning of this tree.

The three thousand, two hundred ninety six lights on the tree signified the three thousand, two hundred ninety six people who had perished over the past 30 years in Northern Ireland. That evening, we were not only honored by the many clerics but also honored by one of the mothers of a victim. She stood in front of the congregation and thanked the people of Killarney for their continued prayers for her son, and the other victims of the past thirty years.

Some of the victims of the unrest in Northern Ireland were never found or their captures had not disclosed where they were buried. Over the Christmas holiday it was a token of peace that some of the families be given the location of their loved ones so they could bring them home for a religious and civilized burial. At the same time this would help the family members by giving them some kind of closure.

The mother, who so bravely stood before our congregation that evening and thanked everyone, was finally bringing her son home to his final resting place.

After the prayer services had ended, everyone in attendance walked outside with candles lit, and witnessed the illumination of this very significant tree.  There could have been a pin dropped as the silence was deafening.

Debby Bozell Donahue '64