Bantry Town Square

In this part of Ireland putting up a nativity scene at Christmas time is as natural as breathing. Known as cribs, they appear everywhere at the beginning of December. Every Irish home has one, perhaps passed down through the generations, and they come out from the attic storage boxes along with the decorations to be displayed in a window or on a mantlepiece or hall table. Even for families that consider themselves non-religious, the crib is an essential part of getting a house ready for Christmas.

One for every budget

Large cribs are erected in town squares and in churches. Sometimes the figures in a church crib will be inserted slowly, one a day, in little ceremonies involving children. Traditionally, the baby Jesus, was not placed in the manger until Christmas Eve. Live cribs, where the nativity figures and animals are alive, are often mounted as fundraisers…

Images of St Brigid and her Cross by Harry Clarke

It’s St Brigid’s Day, and Danny is teaching Finola how to make a Brigid’s Cross with which to safeguard Nead an Iolair from fire and lightning. When his family and ours lived in Devon, Danny faithfully provided us with a new Brigid’s Cross every year. I always kept the old ones – until they disintegrated: that’s the tradition. Now we have both made our homes in West Cork and it seems appropriate that Danny is still the provider of these essential tokens of protection – which should be placed above the hearth, at the threshold of the byre or in the rafters.

February 1st: Tradition under way in the McCormack household

There are far more stories told about the Irish Saint Brigid, Brigit, Brighid or Bride than there are about Saint Patrick himself: if I wrote down here everything I…