One of the ways I chose to be a bit of a goofball in front of the kids last year was by wearing a different obnoxious, ugly Christmas sweater (jumper) for each Youth Choir rehearsal during the month of December. (They mostly got uncomfortable chuckles from the kids, but making them laugh is one of my favorite things to do!) My favorite jumper of them all is a “jingle bell vest” that is truly every bit as wonderful as it sounds. I found it in a thrift store back home some time ago, and I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to be a walking tambourine. I even got a second wear out of it by donning it at last year’s Folk Group Christmas party. Unfortunately, Teach Bhríde’s good friend, (and the Folk Group director,) Ruairí, is not a huge fan of my jingle bell vest, though he can’t really properly explain why. At the mere mention of it a few weeks back, he shuddered and declared that it would be banned from Folk Group this year.
The Irish have a term called “slagging,” which is a word meaning to make fun of someone, but in a good-humored way. This might be in relation to someone’s appearance or to his or her habits. (Each season of Teach Bhríde learns about slagging pretty quickly, especially from the ladies at morning tea!) You have to be quick about it though, and sometimes it’s so subtle, it’s hard to pick up on if you’re not used to hearing it. However, as a seasoned Teach Bhríder, I’ve developed the skill decently well myself now. Sometimes, slagging can also come as a regular, inside joke between friends. This is how I’ve best learned to practice it!
Though my jingle bell vest may have been banned from Folk Group, I still plan to wear it to my own rehearsals as I please. (Have no fear; it can’t be gotten rid of so easily!) But, even with the Christmas season still a ways off, I couldn’t resist taunting Ruairí with a teaser of what’s to come this Christmas. So, for Halloween this year, I decided to dress up as the “Nightmare Before Christmas” for Folk Group rehearsal, wearing a different ugly Christmas jumper, complete with jingle bell “elf” slippers purchased from Dunnes Stores and topped off with a pair of light-up Christmas antlers. I think Ruairí was ready to burn the slippers off of my feet; as well as to pay Laura, Brigid, or Ben to go burn the jingle bell vest itself. However, in true slagging fashion, Ruairí just played along and dealt with it, serving back a few good-natured digs at me. I have a feeling it will continue to be the running joke between all of us for quite awhile!
Teach Bhríde VI Wexford’s Halloween Costumes – Ben the Candy “Rapper”, Laura and Brigid the Witches, and Joy the “Nightmare Before Christmas”!
Sometimes, I feel I can find myself too easily offended by simple things that people say or do to me. (And I’m probably not alone in saying this.) However, this integral part of Irish culture has been a really positive experience for me in that I’ve learned how to be “less serious” about myself. We all have flaws, and, sure, we don’t like them being pointed out to us. But, I also think it’s healthy to admit we are “human” every so often, and slagging is a very innocent way of doing just that. At first, it was jarring to hear two people throwing what seemed like hurtful jabs back and forth to one another. I still experience moments where I wonder if it has gone “too far” during one of these quick-witted sparring sessions. However, I’ve witnessed that it’s always done in friendship with and out of love and affection for the other person. People from non-Irish cultures have a really hard time wrapping their head around this concept, and while I know I probably won’t be able to take slagging in its true form back to the States with me, I have definitely developed a calmer attitude when someone criticizes me, constructively or not. For me, this has been an unexpected gift out of my time in Teach Bhríde, and I’m eager to see how it will serve me in the future!
Peace,
–Joy.
