Feeling festive

Well, here we are again on the cusp of Christmas, and what a build-up to the festive season we have had.

Oban has marked the advent of winter with its usual joie de vivre and panache (yes, I know, the trouble with the French is that they have no word for entrepreneur, as George W Bush once said), marred only by the arrival of Storm Arwen a couple of weeks ago, and the less severe Storm Barra.

The pages of The Oban Times have been replete with countless photographs of happy, smiling faces enjoying the very many celebratory and fun events organised by the usual army of unsung heroes who toil tirelessly to arrange these highlights in the town’s calendar. I have paid fulsome tribute to them in the past and do so very readily once more.

It also behoves me to mention all the workers off the radar without whose efforts we would all be the poorer. It takes the combined contribution of people in numerous trades and professions to keep our society and communities as the very special places they are.

I cannot possibly list all of them but we would not be able to celebrate Christmas as we do without our emergency services, and also everyone such as the bin men and women, council workers, bus drivers, cabbies, delivery drivers, shop staff, publicans and their staff, cafes and hotels, church and pastoral teams, and so on. Well done to all of you for helping to make the festive season so fantastic.

I might also add – now I am no longer on the full-time staff of this august newspaper – that the team at The Oban Times go a considerable way to enhancing the Christmas spirit with superb reporting and photographing of the very many events already mentioned. I know how hard my colleagues strive to keep this newspaper going and they too deserve our thanks.

Finally, may I take this opportunity to thank all of you dear readers and advertisers for continuing to support us, and wish you all a very Merry Christmas.

What do you think?

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