People at home in Ireland have a long weekend on the horizon. Saint Brigid’s Day, 1 February, will be celebrated by the now-annual national holiday, which falls this year on Monday, 3 February.
The long weekend is a gift - the whole weekend for craic and Monday for renewal and rebirth in the spirit of Imbolc, the Pagan feast that also falls on 1 February and celebrates the beginning of spring.
Saint Brigid died in AD 525 at the age of 75 and is celebrated as a trailblazing female figure, an early defender of peace and human rights, and a contributor to the arts. There may have been two Brigids - one a pagan fire goddess, and the other a pioneer nun and Christian saint.
Brigid is associated with the arts, poetry, education, healing, blacksmithing, and so many diverse branches of life that Melanie Lynch, a social entrepreneur, and writer, maintains, “It’s just impossible to put Brigid into a box.” Lynch was at the helm of getting Saint Brigid’s Day declared a national holiday in 2023.
2024, the 1500th anniversary of Brigid’s passing, was a gargantuan year for Ireland’s Matron Saint and her legacy was celebrated in Kildare and across Ireland.
Since 2020, Saint Brigid has also been very much en vogue in Paris, and I previously had the opportunity to write about illustrious Irish women, with French connections, symbolizing Brigid-like qualities.
However, I was recently struck by two Paris-based Irish women’s courage, reactivity, and goodness toward two other women, who had been waylaid on Christmas Day.
Romantic Paris is as dangerous as any other big city, and unfortunately, two elderly women alone, on emptier-than-usual streets and metros on 25 December, were easy targets.
I pried information out of Sue McCarthy and Sonda d’Alton and here’s their scéalta (stories):
Sue, how did you end up in a police station on Christmas Day 2024?
“On Christmas Day evening, I was changing lines in the metro at Jaures when I heard absolutely blood-curdling screams. A man sprinted past me so it was obvious he was the cause of the screaming. Another voyager and I ran after him to try and see which direction he went in but he got on the metro before we could do anything.
"I ended up going to find the victim with the voyager (who’s called Taha). The lady Anne, in her late seventies, uses a walking stick. She had been mugged and shivering from shock. The poor woman had also been drenched by the rain. She had no French, and Taha and I took her to the metro information desk to give them the camera numbers of where the ‘aggressor’ had evanesced and they passed the information to the rest of the metro network.
"Another man (who I since found out was homeless) went to get the camera number of where the mugging happened and then we took her to the Police Station.
"The police refused to let us enter the station to report the offense but I said I’d interpreted for the Brigade Financier here in France so I would translate. Two and a half hours later, and after translating everything, we finally left.
"Taha and I brought Anne back to the hostel where she was staying and we stayed with her for a couple of hours till she calmed down. She was shaking and crying and still in shock. We tried to contact her family by Facebook etc. and eventually left after explaining to the manager and staff what had happened.
"Hell of a Christmas Day, but I’ve found two new friends!
"I finally met Anne again on 30th December, turns out she’s a musician and scriptwriter. The two of us called Taha to let him know that she was fine. The taxis required, along with money to tide Anne over, were provided by her Metro angels."
Sue was the principal flute player of the Athens Chamber Orchestra before moving to Paris where, along with working as a freelance musician, she also teaches the flute to underprivileged children.
Sue McCarthy.
Sonda, how did you end up tackling an assailant on Christmas Day 2024?:
“As I walked along the street on my way to the metro musing over what we were going to have for Christmas lunch, I became aware that something was brewing on the footpath opposite me.
"Next thing, a big guy began attacking a lady who was in her 70s.
"There was nobody around. My gut reaction just kicked in. People sometimes say I speak quietly… but not on that occasion!
"He had hit her once already on the side of the head and was going for round two.
"Luckily, my roaring and shouting had the desired effect and he lowered his hand that was aiming for her temple.
"It turned out that she didn’t know him. It seems he did not like the way ‘Catherine’ looked at him as they passed each other.
"Once the guy, was gone I spent some time with ‘Catherine.’ I had noticed that when she spoke French, she had an accent that I kind of recognized, but could not place. The twist to the tail is that the lady turned out to be half Irish, half English, and living just behind my place for 50 years.
"You never know how you will react but were it to happen again I would like to think I would pitch in. Not courageous, not heroic…just instinct.”
As well as enjoying a successful career, Sonda plays an active role in two Irish charities that accept volunteers from abroad: Friends of the Elderly – Ireland, for which she recruited several other Irish women living in France, to phone isolated, elderly Irish people.
Passionate about cycling, Sonda is a also real advocate for Cycle Against Suicide and raised money for the charity by doing a 1000km cycle. In her spare time, she enjoys improvisation.
Sonda d'Alton.
Fair play to Sue and Sonda, who brought Brigid-ness to the streets of Paris. They may not be household names but will surely be blessed in the houses of Scottish Anne and half-Irish ‘Catherine’.
Might Brigid have ‘bestowed a sweet smile’ on the two elderly, Celtic ladies, sending a Brigid squad of two compassionate ‘Irish warrior women’ to their rescue?
Who knows, but after dreary, ‘Dry January’, I’ll raise my glass to Brigid and Springtime, to Sue and Sonda, and fiery, courageous, creative Irish women the world over!
This article was submitted to the IrishCentral contributors network by a member of the global Irish community. To become an IrishCentral contributor click here.
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