An Ghéarchéim Cógaisíochta!

The Pharmaceutical Crisis!

by | 2025/03/25 | Current Affairs, International News, National News, Opinion

An Ghéarchéim Cógaisíochta

Background

The pharmaceutical industry is the backbone of the Irish economy, contributing significantly to employment, investment and innovation in the country. Many years ago, the Industrial Development Agency (IDA) lured pharmaceutical and technology companies to Ireland with an offer they found hard to refuse, namely a very favourable tax regime compared to their domestic tax regimes in the United States of America (US) and the European Union (EU). It is no surprise, then, that Ireland has been heavily criticized for its tax system by the US and the EU (particularly France and Germany) and the United Kingdom (UK). In response to this international pressure, the Irish government has overhauled its tax system, abolishing the complex scheme known as the ‘Double Irish’ (in 2020) and adopting a global minimum tax rate (in 2021) set by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Unfortunately, these significant changes have not silenced its critics. Trump raised the issue with Taoiseach Micheál Martin in the Oval Office of the White House on 12 March, saying: “You have taken over our pharmaceutical companies and other companies… The US pharmaceutical industry is completely in the hands of this beautiful island of 5 million people.” He threatened to impose a 200% tariff on pharmaceuticals imported from Ireland to the US. Was President Trump right?

The Problem

President Trump made a good point, and that is a cause for concern, as the Irish economy is heavily dependent on exports to the US, but particularly pharmaceutical exports. In 2024, Ireland exported €224 billion of goods to other countries; of that €72.6 billion of goods to the US, and of that €58 billion of pharmaceuticals. That is a significant number, when you put it in context. The three largest exporters to the US in the EU last year (2024) were Germany (€161 billion), Ireland (€72 billion) and Italy (€65 billion). What is going on here? It is money laundering, albeit legal.

A Couple of Examples

  1. Intellectual Property (IP) & Royalty Payments

Imagine that the company ‘Drugs’ creates a new drug in the US called ‘Relief’. Instead of registering the patent in the United States, Drugs registers the patent under its subsidiary in Ireland, Drugs Ireland.

Now, every time Drugs (US) sells Relief in the United States, US Drugs must pay a royalty fee to Drugs Ireland for the use of the patent. Needless to say, the royalty fee is intentionally very high. Therefore, profits are lower in the United States (because of the royalty fees), and higher in Ireland (where the tax is lower).

  1. Price Manipulation

Drugs Ireland makes Relief for $10 per pill. Instead of selling the drug directly to customers, Drugs Ireland sells it to US Drugs for $200 per pill. US Drugs then sells the pill in the United States for $220 per pill.

In this case, US Drugs reports a profit of $20 per pill in the United States, while Irish Drugs receives a profit of $190 per pill, which is taxable at a lower rate in Ireland. This keeps most of the profit in Ireland (where tax is lower).

Implications?

Many of the world’s pharmaceutical companies are based in the United States. There is a huge market for prescription drugs, and high prices have long been a controversial issue there. This is a political and economic concern in the United States, and puts pressure on its government’s pharmaceutical policies. The Irish government is receiving money that should have been paid to the US government, and the American people are having to pay for that shortfall in the form of higher pharmaceutical prices. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick says this is a scam.

“We have to try to tackle the tax scams that are going on. Ireland is my favorite. Ireland had a $60 billion budget surplus last year. So [America] loses two trillion and they make $60 (billion). What do they do? They have all our intellectual property for our great technology. Our big tech companies and great pharmaceutical companies - they put all their intellectual property there because there is low tax to pay, and they don’t pay the US at all. So that’s over,” the secretary said.

Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on drugs coming from Ireland to the US – up to 200%. That would have a huge impact on the Irish economy and a deep recession in the country.

Solution?

It is clear that Trump (and Lutnick) are serious and in the absence of any other solution, they will most likely continue with steep tariffs on drugs coming from Ireland.

It is essential to put strategic policies in place to avoid such a crisis. The above schemes need to be implemented, and a plan needs to be devised and shared with the US government to phase them out in stages. If adopted, this will give us more time to find a long-term solution. The government needs to invest in the pharmaceutical and technology sectors, to create a business environment in the country, that will provide opportunities to people to set up companies, and attract qualified employees to them. Ireland has the appropriate expertise to reduce our dependence on the US as quickly as possible, and to diversify the economy which would be of great benefit to the country in the future. It is late and it is difficult, but we have no other choice now!

 

 

 

Litir ó Mheiriceá – Cruachás na bhfostaithe feidearálacha!

Letter from America - The plight of federal employees!

by | 2025/03/11 | Current Affairs, Literature, International News, Politics, Opinion

Letter from America - The plight of federal employees!

The Enemy Within

Everything is upside down in the United States of America (USA) right now, and it is a great pity. No other country can trust the USA anymore. It feels like President Trump is turning to the other side – the side of Russia. He is giving Russia the benefit of the doubt, while at the same time turning his back on his Allies, the European Union (including Ireland!), Ukraine, Canada and Mexico, to name just a few. This story will end badly, no doubt.

Even in the United States itself, Trump and his cronies are treating a large portion of their own citizens as if they were the enemy. His big ally, Elon Musk, is firing thousands of government employees, in a way that is brutal and cruel and, apparently, illegal. It reminds me of a movie called ‘Up in the Air’, starring George Clooney, and he has to fire people all over the country. When his boss suggests that he do his work on ‘Zoom’ or something similar, he has a big problem with that approach, because he has a conscience.

Musk goes a few steps further than that, because he fired many people at the same time, with a single email. He has no idea what he is doing, and many people are suffering as a result. Here are a few personal stories from people who have recently lost their federal jobs.

Samantha Leach

Samantha Leach was happy eight months ago. She landed the job she loved at the Federal Bureau of Engraving and Printing, working with a team that respected her skills and dedication.

That joy was dashed earlier this month. She learned (via email) that she was among thousands of federal government employees on probation who were suddenly laid off. The insult was compounded when she read that she had failed to perform her duties on the job. But Samantha received the highest rating - five out of five, in her most recent performance review.

“I was good, very good at the job I was assigned. I did everything right - literally! But despite everything, I was shown the door. That was a terrible blow, for someone like me who just wants to be where I fit in, contributing to the success of the federal government.”

Tony Ruiz

Tony Ruiz, of Orange County, California, was fired on February 3, just ten days before his probationary period as a Service Representative working for the Department of Veterans Affairs was to end.

The disabled army veteran said he was hired after 15 years in the private sector to help veterans with their benefit claims — for example, help with paperwork to approve a medical procedure or to enroll a spouse in a policy. Tony said he often handles up to 40 claims a day.

He was shocked and appalled when he read in his termination letter that his standard of work was unacceptable. Last August, Tony became the first employee in his department to win an “employee of the quarter” award, which came with a $1,000 cash prize.

“You’re telling me (that) one of the best employees, who was awarded money, and was employee of the quarter ... is a worthless person?” he said.

Tony found it hard to even leave the house at first and is taking some time to come to terms with what happened to him.

“I’m heartbroken, I’m devastated,” Tony said. “I don’t think any American federal employee, especially a veteran, deserves this.”

Analysis

Musk and his team have done a lot of damage to the federal government and its employees. We saw Musk on stage with a chainsaw, showing how focused he is on cost-cutting measures in the government. Musk has likely overstepped his authority and violated laws that protect federal employees. He has targeted the FAA (Federal Aviation Authority), USAID (United States Agency for International Development), and NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), even trying to shut down USAID. Musk behaves as if the US government is part of his business. But the government is not there to make a profit, but for the benefit of the people of the country.

Trump’s ministers are not happy with the current state of affairs and Musk’s interference in their affairs. While Musk has given the boot to many people, the political responsibility for what he has done lies solely with the ministers. There was a heated meeting at the White House recently, with Trump, his ministers, and Musk in the room. There was a big argument between Musk and a few Secretaries, and in particular Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who heads USAID. The decision was made that Musk would no longer be able to directly give the sack to federal employees. He will put forward proposals on the subject, but the Secretaries will have the power to accept or reject them.

There is a power struggle going on between Musk and Trump’s ministers. Musk has been dealt a blow by the decision to make him an advocate without any power of action. But that is not a fatal blow, and I think Musk will not give up without a fight. But Trump’s ministers should have the power, so they will probably win the day. Without a doubt, Musk’s plan is falling apart, and he and Trump are up to their necks in lawsuits. In addition, public discontent with Musk’s actions is growing. It is clear that Trump or his ministers will have no desire to go further down the same road. Trump himself said they need to use a scalpel instead of an axe, because he understands the political risks of Musk's approach so far. I hope the US government will treat the federal workforce fairly, and stop mistreating these fine, honest people who are the backbone of the government!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Litir ó Mheiriceá – D.O.G.E!

Letter from America - D.O.G.E.!

by | 2025/01/28 | Current Affairs, International News, Opinion

Letter from America - D.O.G.E.!

Donald Trump and Elon Musk have created an advisory agency outside the United States government that will advise Trump on how to cut a significant amount of spending from the federal budget. Musk initially thought he could cut $2 trillion, but later admitted that it would be a smaller amount. But cutting a significant amount – an amount that would make a big difference – will not be easy. To understand this, it is necessary to explain a few things about the US federal budget.

U.S.A. Federal Budget

The federal government has a budget of $6.75 trillion for 2024. The budget is divided into two parts: mandatory spending and discretionary spending. Mandatory spending cannot be cut, as Trump himself has declared, no matter how big or small it is. In that category, programs such as: health (Medicare and others): 28%; Social Security: 21%; defense: 18% and repayment of the national debt: 14%. That’s 81% of the federal budget, or nearly $5.5 trillion of the $6.75 trillion. Even if you cut everything in the discretionary budget (veteran benefits, transportation, agriculture, unemployment benefits, housing assistance, and more), you’d only cut $1.25 trillion. But it wouldn’t be realistic to cut everything discretionary.

We don’t know much about Musk’s intentions when it comes to cutting back. Incidentally, Vivek Ramaswamy, a former presidential candidate and tech billionaire, was originally Musk’s partner, but he’s leaving that position to run for governor in Ohio. But there are other tech stars like venture capitalist Marc Andreessen working with Musk at D.O.G.E. There’s no shortage of smart people, no doubt!

D.O.G.E. Plans

Musk and Ramaswamy wrote that the main focus would be “reductions in the number of employees across the federal bureaucracy.” Otherwise, however, the story is shrouded in secrecy. It’s no wonder that federal employees are wary of the uncertainty surrounding their careers. It’s easy to believe that those same employees are in a state of awe and fear, especially when you consider what Musk did to Twitter after buying it—namely, laying off 80% of its employees.

On the other hand, however, as other industry leaders have discovered, there are significant differences between government and industry. Cutting or even changing any aspect of government—from headcount to budget to the rules pages in the federal register—is a thankless task.

The challenges facing D.O.G.E.

In any case, it won’t be easy for Musk and his employees at D.O.G.E. achieve its objective. Here are a few difficulties they will face:

• Cutting the number of employees would not save a large percentage of the budget. Even if you eliminate 25% of federal jobs, you would only save 1% of federal spending.
• Federal employees would not humbly accept being let go. There are millions of them as members of unions, who will work on his behalf to protect their jobs.
• D.O.G.E. will not have any special power. D.O.G.E. will not be able to fire any federal employee, because they do not have that power. D.O.G.E. is a think tank that will be able to make recommendations to the government. Trump will have to implement them, and he must take political calculus into account before making any such decision.

Another Challenge!

This is not the first time that federal spending has been cut. In the past 50 years, annual federal spending has only been cut five times, and no reduction has been greater than 8%. Those cuts have occurred in special cases – after the 2008-9 financial crisis, and after the 2020-2023 pandemic. Even in the 1980s under Ronald Reagan himself, who created a commission to reduce federal spending and instructed its members to “work like a bloodhound without ceasing,” spending increased every year.

Conclusion

The United States Congress is in charge of spending. On the one hand, its members say that government spending needs to be cut, but on the other (and for good reason!) they are not willing to cut spending in their own constituencies.

This puts D.O.G.E. in trouble, and they are gradually learning the hard truth in that department. Musk recently said that a $2 trillion cut would be the best case scenario, and while he would try to achieve that goal, they are more likely to reach $1 trillion. D.O.G.E. has been putting its own employees in federal operations for quite some time, to gain a deeper understanding of their operations and inefficiencies.

Musk and D.O.G.E. aim to have the task completed by July 4, 2026. That way, if legislation is needed, Congress will have six months to pass it. When you consider how large and complex the U.S. government is, they’re going to need every minute of that time in D.O.G.E. for this massive and complex task!

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Litir ó Mheiriceá – Los Angeles ar lasadh!

Letter from America - Los Angeles on Fire!

by | 2025/01/15 | Current Affairs, International News, Opinion

Los Angeles on Fire!

When we arrived in California years ago, we had never seen a motorway or freeway before, except on television. The Dublin to Naas dual carriageway was the closest thing we had to an Irish highway at the time.

I was terrified of them and tried my best to stay clear of them. I was successful at first, but that quickly ended when I accidentally drove up an on-ramp. There was nothing to do but go with the flow and then we were on the freeway! I had a death grip on the steering wheel and was bent over it. I was sweating! I stayed in the slow lane and kept driving. We knew we had to drive out on an off-ramp as soon as we could or we would end up in San Francisco.

Finally, I managed to escape the freeway at a place called ‘Pacific Palisades’. You may recognize the name because it is now a household name around the world.

In those early days we thought we were in Heaven on Earth. The weather was perfect every day and there was a culture of convenience. Unfortunately, it was short-lived, and our honeymoon came to an abrupt end one day when there was an earthquake. We had the TV on and the news reporter quickly ducked under the news desk. Our building was rocking back and forth but it remained intact. You would think the shaking would never stop, but eventually it did.

It rained a lot during our first winter living in Los Angeles, resulting in landslides and mudslides and the destruction of several homes.

Although there had been some significant damage from wildfires in our early days in California, things got worse over time. Wildfires are more frequent and dangerous today than ever before. Global warming probably has something to do with it. We lived on the edge of the woods for many years, completely unaware of the dangers of fire. We bought a house by the ocean twenty-five years ago so that we could be closer to our workplaces, and we are there still. We didn’t realize at the time that there was a big advantage to that – wildfires are rare here, because the mountains are not close to us. There was a terrible wildfire in this county (San Diego) in 2003, and many of my colleagues lost their homes in that wildfire – the ‘Cedar Fire’. My son and I had to drive by that wildfire on our way home from a road trip. It was terrifying to be so close to flames that touched the sky itself. The air was hot and there was a strong smell of burning. We could also hear the roar of the fire. When you see and hear a fire that big and so close, you have a new understanding of the danger, scale and scope of a fire. That understanding stays with you forever.

No doubt, you saw the fires in Pacific Palisades and Altadena on TV, and you heard all the news about it. The fires are tearing apart and destroying everything in their path, small, medium or large, and those suburbs are right in the way. Between Pacific Palisades and Altadena, more than 12,000 buildings have burned to the ground so far. At least 25 people have died so far. It is a terrible disaster that has affected many families, and it will be very difficult for them for many years to come.

There are two main reasons for these terrible fires. First of all, we have been suffering from a drought for the past 8 months. Therefore, all the vegetation is very dry. Secondly, the dry desert winds (‘Santa Anas’) have been blowing in their wake for the past week, at high speeds of up to 160 km per hour. In such climatic conditions, it only takes one spark to ignite a fire and that is exactly what happened in these cases.

It is always difficult to deal with disasters of this magnitude as they occur, and although the fire crew was on the scene quite quickly, and although firefighting aircraft were dropping relentlessly, various problems soon became apparent. The fire crew does not have sufficient resources, due to the fact that its budget allocation has been cut year after year. In addition, some of the fire hydrants further up the mountains dried up, so that water was not available to firefighters at a critical time. The residential water system is not designed to cope with such demands being placed on it. Many investigations will be conducted to discuss and understand these issues to see what we can do to improve matters.

There are currently 8 fires burning in the region, and thousands of firefighters are working hard to put them out. Firefighters have come from all over to help – from California, other states in the United States, Canada and Mexico. FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) is on the ground providing care, advice and financial assistance to victims of the disaster. Hundreds of police (LAPD) and National Guardsmen are patrolling the area, preventing crime.

It is a very difficult time for those who have lost family members or friends. It is not easy for those who are now homeless, especially those who were burned out of their homes. Almost 100,000 people are currently under evacuation orders, and it is very difficult for them to find shelter. It will take a long time to clean up, and many years to rebuild.

But the reality is that Southern California is under constant threat from natural disasters, including earthquakes. The landslides, floods, and mudslides are likely to get worse over time. This will increase the challenges we face and make it more dangerous to live here. While it is Heaven on Earth most of the time, it is Hell on Earth at other times!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Na Cloig Bhuile Arís!

The Wild Bells Again!

by | 2024/12/25 | Current Affairs, Opinion

The Wild Bells Again!

Introduction

Peadar Bairéad (my father) wrote an article twenty years ago bidding farewell to one year and welcoming another. That article is as fresh and relevant today as it was when it was written. Perhaps that is not a good thing, because we (humankind) failed to make a lot of progress in the meantime, and we are still plagued by the same problems. But hope springs eternal and hope is deep-seated in us. Therefore, we will never stop our struggle towards a better world – a world where peace prevails forever! And without further ado, here is Peadar’s own article.

Annual Lament

The time of those wild bells has come and gone again. What bells am I talking about here, is it?

The bells are rung to mourn the passing of one year, and to celebrate the birth of a new one, and I need not remind my readers that I use, year after year, appropriate lines from that beautiful, nostalgic lament, composed by Alfred Lord Tennyson, in memory of his friend, Arthur Hallum, in the year 1841, to mourn the passing of a year, for in that poem, there happen to be beautiful quatrains, bidding farewell to the year that was slipping into the depths of history, and at the same time, welcoming the new year, and the happy, peaceful life that that same new year would offer to mankind. And since it would be difficult to surpass the verses of that same poem in expressing “Ave atque Vale”, on this nostalgic occasion, I have therefore decided to use those same verses, once more, to do that for me.

Atmosphere

So, watch how Tennyson creates a fitting atmosphere for the occasion, with the ringing of those same mad bells:

“Ring out wild bells to the wild sky,

The flying cloud, the frosty lights.

The year is dying in the night,

Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.”

Yes, ring out that mournful bell, as the year is dying in the middle of the night, ring out, and let it die. That is the message the poet sends us, down through the ages.

It may not have been the worst year yet, that year that has just passed, but at the same time, the new year could be a lot better. There is no doubt in the world, but many things happened during that year 2024, without which life would have been better. I need not refer to the floods, the fires, the earthquakes, the wars, the sexual assaults, the drugs, the muggings, the violence, or all the other evils, that have afflicted mankind during the year that is now sent into the mill of time, that year of our Lord, 2024.

The Tailor’s farewell!

And since that same year has now passed, we can give it some abuse. In that Roman phrase “De Mortuis Nil Nisi Bonum”, we were not prevented from saying anything we liked about it, yes, and we can add the tailor’s blessing with his broken needle to it.

Ring out the want, the care, the sin,

The faithless coldness of the times.

Ring out, ring out my mournful rhymes,

But ring the fuller minstrel in.

Be that as it may, each of us probably has our own list of the virtues and benefits we have gained from the year that has now passed, or there are two sides to every story. Can't we all think about the conflicts that were resolved, the problems that were solved, the hunger that was satisfied, the thirst that was quenched, the relief that was given, and the crimes that were forgiven during the year? 

The Thousand Years Of Peace

But all that said, aren't we all praying to God that this new year 2025, in a far better one for us, than the guy who is escaping from us.

Ring out old shapes of foul disease,

Ring out the narrowing lust of gold,

Ring out the thousand wars of old,

Ring in the thousand years of peace.

Yes, aren't we all, probably, seeking peace? And don't we all remember the beautiful, stirring vision of the prophet Isaiah, and didn't he sing poetically about those days of peace to come. He himself must have lived in a time that was quite turbulent, but under Divine inspiration, he succeeded in setting before us, as a race, another possibility, a time when there will be an end forever to fighting and warfare; to slaughter and discord; yes, and to trouble and violence. There would be no more wars, or even rumors of them, the skills of warfare would be forgotten, and weapons would no longer be designed or made among men...

“And they shall beat their swords into plowshares,

And their spears into billhooks,

Races shall not raise the sword against each other hereafter,

Nor shall they learn war anymore.”

Isn’t that vision beautiful, shining down upon us through the darkness of the night of human history? That is the desire of the human heart, and at this time of year, we pray again the ancient prayer, that prayer of the Angels...

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

Utopia not here yet

But that era has not yet arrived. There is no end to wars, nor to rumors of wars, nor have we defeated famine, nor to all the plagues that torment and afflict our race, but even so, that Guiding Star is in the sky, to guide us, and to hurry us, towards the Vision of the prophet Isaiah. That is the road ahead, that is the road that we are to tread in this year 2025, and is not that the road that will lead us to the Promised Land?

As we now sail into that new year, all I have to do is wish you all a prosperous and beautiful New Year and may we all be seven times better a year from tonight.

Ring out the old, ring in the new,

Ring happy bells across the snow,

The year is going, let him go.

Ring out the false, ring in the true.

 

Many happy returns!

Stór focal: cumhach, nostalgic; umar, trough; Ave atque Vale, hail and farewell; ag síothlú, dying; sciolladóireacht, scolding; caismirtí, conflicts; faoi anáil Dé, by Divine inspiration; Réalta Eolais, guiding star; Tír Tairngire, the Promised Land 

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Nollaig Shona Daoibh!

Merry Christmas!

by | 2024/12/18 | Current Affairs, Opinion

Merry Christmas!

Christmas held a special place in my father’s (Peadar Bairéad) heart, and it was undoubtedly a magical festival for him. It evoked memories of his childhood in Erris of the Wonders with his family and neighbours, in the place he loved the most in the world, celebrating the faith that was so important and so strong and so central to him and to them at that time. Despite their living from hand to mouth, and perhaps because of that, the local community was very tight together and they were all very generous.

Christmas put all the children under a magic spell, and it was from that magic that Peadar’s vision of Christmas arose. Even as he grew up and grew older, he did not lose that bright vision he had as a child.

Here, in his own words, is a brief account of Christmas Morning when Peadar was a boy in the 1920s, over in Erris of the Wonders in County Mayo.

Christmas Morning

We could forget about the Christmas Stockings for a while. We would have fun with them after Mass... But 'First things First'... as they say.

But everyone was getting ready for Mass by now. There was no talk of breakfast, as we were all going to Mass fasting. Wasn't the light of the paraffin lamp beautiful that blessed morning?

 It was time to go to Church now, for the townspeople were already on foot, and they were going to church in small silent groups, and it was time for us to do the same. I don't remember rain or snow ever on Christmas morning; frost, certainly; and a starry sky full of bright, shining stars. There was a sacredness and a secret divinity to the cold and the stars. The presence of God was felt in them.

The women of the town met us. They were happy, content, returning home from early Mass, to start cooking. We would have goose for Christmas, at that time. Turkey was not customary in those days. No foreign culture had impacted us, at that time. The custom of turkey is a transatlantic custom, which had not yet been adopted in Erris.

And in the case of that church, in the Geata Mór, there were only seats for shopkeepers, teachers, and other well-to-do people of the parish, but the common people remained on their feet! But it didn't matter. It was the House of God, and it always welcomed everyone, however rich or poor. There was no light in that church except the light of the candles, those candles that gave us a soft, yellow, golden light, a light that was soft, kind, and warm, a light that had the magic of contentment. The end of Mass, and the dawn, coming together. Well, that's how I remember it.

We would spend the rest of the day idling, just as Peig Sayers would say long ago. We would feast, and have fun until nightfall, and be sure, too, that a couple of us would have his own wing of goose, after we had said goodbye to the big Christmas goose, because, alas, a goose has only two wings! 

And wouldn't there be a long, tiring day ahead of us with the Wren, the next day?

Wasn't it nice to be alive, but heavenly to be young, those days long ago, in West Erris, and many happy returns!

Christmas of (our) Youth

At Christmas, with the stars dancing,

As they danced in Bethlehem long ago,

Thoughts return to me in their myriads,

Like angels singing for the season.

 

The big blue candle burning

In the bright kitchen window,

To entice the Virgin's family

Through the frost and snow of the season.

 

My Mom busy making cakes and pastries,

Kneading and baking effortlessly,

And us playing and chatting,

In that little thatched house long ago.

 

The big roaring fire enticed me,

With warmth and loud crackling,

Soothing me, calming me, encouraging me,

With its bright, untroubled visions.

 

Would Saint Nicholas come to visit us,

At night when the Christmas star is above,

Or would the Baby and his Mom come,

When the family would lie down to sleep?

 

Memories of childhood return to me,

Tonight itself, and my age lost from me,

And the child in my heart praises

The child who lay in the manger.

 

Merry Christmas, and a happy and prosperous New Year, to all our readers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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