Reflecting on 2025 in Kildare and beyond

IT IS a time of year for reflection, and what a year it has been.

It is not long since the Athy senior Gaelic football team battled all the way to Croke Park, in what was an exhilarating series of games.

The town was dressed in the red and white all the way to the Leinster Final, and while we did not leap the final hurdle, what joy and excitement that campaign brought to the whole town! Congratulations again to all on the Athy panel for their hard work, and for the thrill and hope they brought to their spectators, game after game.

We look forward to the Kildare Senior Champions having another successful campaign in 2026.

Congratulations also to the camogie Leinster Junior Champions 2025 for a marvellous result.

This was also the year that the refurbished Emily Square opened, and with it the new Shackleton Museum.

Our town now has an attractive central plaza worthy of its 800-year old history, and we are only just beginning to see its potential.

Let’s hope for many more concerts and community events in 2026. Congratulations to all involved with the launch of the Shackleton Museum, which must now count as one of the most original interactive exhibitions in the country.

It is already attracting high numbers of local and international visitors, and the extra footfall can only be positive for other local businesses.

Less reassuring have been the effects of the new Kildare County Council bye-laws on the Tuesday market.

I am told that the market has seen far fewer traders in the weeks coming up to Christmas, which should surely be some of the busiest weeks of the year.

In the coming weeks I hope that the council will keep an eye on how our historic market is faring under the new system, and re-evaluate some of its decisions, if needs be.

Further afield, we still see destruction and despair in the ongoing conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, an enduring housing crisis at home, and many people struggling with the rising cost of living.

At a time when the news at home and abroad is so often bleak and discouraging, we can only do what we can.

The annual Lions Club Christmas Appeal, which so many support, helps many families in our town, as do the volunteers of St Vincent de Paul.

Individually we can always reach out to our neighbours and friends to offer companionship and support in hard times.

In fact, it has often been remarked to me by visitors how friendly the people of Athy are, and what a strong community our town has.

While Athy has had its share of economic ups and downs over the past decades, that community spirit remains its greatest strength.

I have my own thanks to give for great friendship and support over the past year. Last Christmas Eve I was finally discharged from hospital after weeks of inpatient care.

The following months remained a rocky road, but summer brought with it a new hope and thanks to the benefits of regular immunotherapy I will be again spending Christmas at home with my family.

I wish to give heartfelt thanks to all those friends who sent cards and letters over the past year, and who visited and offered support to myself and my family at a most difficult time.

I want to thank also the fantastic primary care team in Athy, and the staff of Naas hospital and Bons Secours hospital who saw me on too many occasions!

So this year my thoughts turn to those who may not get their chance to stay home for Christmas, or who will be missing loved ones.

I write this because we can still feel the comfort and joy of Christmas, while we make room for its sadnesses too.

For my five-year-old grandson, Christmas is a time of unadulterated joy and excitement. Santa is coming and surely dreams will come true.

But as the decades pass, Christmas can become a more poignant holiday for us, a time for reflection on loss. That is as it is.

We can but hold these two things together: joy and sadness, anticipation and regret.

This is the darkest time of year, but it is also a turning point – after the winter solstice, the sun will begin to return and the days will stretch that little bit longer.

At this final turning of the year, I wish all my readers a happy and peaceful Christmas. I wish you time with friends and family, hope for the months ahead, and, who knows, a little magic too. Beannachtaí na féile libh go léir, is Nollaig shona daoibh a chairde.