Sharon Smyth gets up at 5.45am every December 25, and gets ready as quietly as possible before heading to the Catering Department in The Coombe.
The roads are always clear at that time of the morning, and, of course, it’s the one day of the year when she can get parking easily after her ten-minute drive to work in Dublin’s Liberties.
“I have worked on Christmas Day for the last 27 years, more or less,” Sharon said.
“It’s great. I have my son, he’s 18 now. When he was smaller, I got the day off, but he’s not small anymore.
“My son is in sixth year now and he worked in the Coombe over the summer. He’ll be working there for Christmas this year to help upstairs on the wards.
“It’s lovely to get in, a lot of girls come down for their break and we get the chance to talk because it’s not so busy.
“We can still sit down, talk to them, and see how their day is going. It’s a small hospital and we’re a nice family here, we all know each other.
“It gives us time to catch up because it’s busy during the year. Christmas Day, Stephen’s Day, it’s nice to catch up,” she added.
The kitchen moves into full swing early on Christmas Day to get the breakfasts ready – a full Irish for the day that’s in it – for patients.
Around 10am, the chefs are busy behind the scenes in the kitchen, preparing the Christmas dinner.
The breakfast trays are collected from the wards, so Sharon and her team get the crockery and cutlery washed and dried before dressing the tables with tablecloths, candles and Christmas crackers.
“I like coming in and helping. It’s nice to get in and just make sure everybody’s okay,” Sharon said.
“It feels like Christmas Day. I don’t feel like I’m at work. You go home and you’re full of beans. You’re going home to your family; I look forward to that after having a nice day at work.
“It’s nice to get in here and share all the stories, because we all share stories about our families, everybody’s in the same boat.
“We’re not here for a long time; we’re just here for a short time and we have to make the most of our lives.
“We dress up, the canteen is done up. We’ve a Christmas tree and we light candles. We’ve got Christmas crackers and Christmas dinner, it’s lovely.
“A lot of staff who come from other countries, where Christmas is not a tradition, love the excitement of the day as much as we do. Everyone is in great form and most of us are wearing Christmas jumpers and hats.”
At 2.30pm Sharon gets home and does Christmas again with her family.
“My husband John works in the Coombe too and he’s off for Christmas. I’m out of the kitchen and John has everything ready and I’ll be sitting down with a glass of wine,” she said.
“From then on, he makes sure I relax while he serves my Christmas dinner. It’s a great feeling and I really love my double Christmas.
“My mam, she’s 84, she lives on her own, she’ll come to us on Christmas Day and Stephen’s Day. Then on New Year’s, she’ll probably go to my sister’s.
“It’s a family affair, there’s not many of us left in our family, but we just make the most of what we have,” she added.
