Make Christmas a time to reach out to others
At this time of year many of us look forward to celebrating the festive season with relatives and friends. But for some folk this season raises apprehension and dread. For them it reinforces their poverty and isolation when it seems that everyone in the world is enjoying and sharing food, gifts and celebrations in their family and social circles.
Christmas is just another reminder of the burden they carry year round.
I am thinking of parents on low incomes who struggle to cover essential household bills for shelter and food and their children's education throughout the year. They have the additional worries about how they can give their children the gifts and food that most of us see as part and parcel of a merry Christmas.
I am also thinking of folk who are lonely, for example through the limitations that poverty places on their lives, through long-term unemployment, through homelessness or through the social isolation that can sometimes accompany ageing or a disability.
It doesn't have to be like this and we work hard in our own services at the Brotherhood to recognise and act on the importance of social connection in the lives of everyone, as part of our mission to realise a just and fair society.
It is my firm belief that we all should be able to enjoy a full and active life in the community - by getting a good education, receiving an adequate income, having a decent job and a safe and comfortable home and being closely connected to family, friends and community activities. The generous support we receive in time, skills and money from volunteers, donors, philanthropic foundations and businesses helps us to carry on, and indeed expand, our valuable work.
So while this is the time of year to share with family and friends, it's also a wonderful time to reach out to others.
On behalf of the Brotherhood of St Laurence I wish you joy and peace at Christmas and throughout the New Year.
Tony Nicholson, Executive Director, Brotherhood of St Laurence