Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1320058
6 OPINION 17.12.2020 2 020 is fast coming to its end. It started well for the first two months and we all enjoyed the brisk air and sa- vored memories of office parties and driving to our favorite res- taurants with family and friends. is came to an abrupt halt in mid-March, when the health authorities gave us a severe shock of a three-month complete lockdown. Prior to the lockdown, we saw scenes of shoppers madly buying anything that came useful, sweeping clean shelves of pasta, sugar, crackers, baking materials and toilet rolls - all by the dozen. Shelves in many stores were laid bare and soon cars were driven out of garages to make space for emergency stocks. Nine months on and we were regaled with daily TV appear- ances of medical officers an- nouncing the increasing num- ber of victims and mortality numbers (mostly vulnerable persons). Now, in the holy month of December there is little feeling to mingling to- gether in staff parties (which are banned) or visiting clubs, gyms, cinemas and other plac- es where social distancing rules cannot be upheld. Many have an urge for the past glory of Christmas which was a time for exchanging heartfelt wishes to their neigh- bors and staff members. Deep in our subconscious, we still clamour for the good times when Christmas was a time of giving and sharing with those around us. And that sharing is not limited to those that we love and care for, it is also for those we have never met and will never meet (as is evident during the Strina fundraiser each year) Now, no more seasonal cheer from meeting extended fam- ilies for fear of contracting COVID-19. While family tra- ditions carry a special signif- icance for many Maltese, we need to limit ourselves to basic activities that are necessary to keep the family unit function- ing. For no, we can no longer risk the occasional family dinner on Friday night at a favourite restaurant where family mem- bers and friends share jokes and relax. Such simple gather- ings generate fond memories that everyone cherishes. We hold fond memories of tradi- tional habits such as going to hear Mass after the family din- ner on Christmas Eve. Few this year will hear the sermon of the child (Il-Pried- ka tat-Tifel), which dating back to 1883, is the oldest and one of the most important traditions at Christmas. e sermon is, unusually, not giv- en by the priest but by a small boy or girl aged between 7 and 10, who tells the story of nativ- ity whilst standing at the main altar. In the mid 1980's in every town, after the Midnight Mass, children's processions were organised. Hot chocolate drinks laced with a touch of brandy greets the adults after the midnight vigil. Again, this year many will not bother to indulge baking the traditional Christmas log, made with lots of chocolate, cherries, nuts, biscuits and a bit of whisky - face masks and social distanc- ing dictate caution. On a good note, a publica- tion by a government depart- ment responsible for poverty reduction and social exclu- sion reported hefty progress. It warms our heart to hear that there has been a decrease in the rate of severe material deprivation, referring to situa- tions when a person struggles to pay for at least four of nine basic items and can't cope with unexpected expenses. To give an example, in 2013 7.1 per cent of pensioners were in this bracket. Since then, the number has decreased signifi- cantly to 2.6 per cent. Simply put, the proportion of people at risk of poverty has dropped from 24.6 per cent in 2013 to 20.1 per cent last year. Even better is that the the number of children at risk of poverty or social exclusion has also decreased; from 33 per cent in 2013 to 23.6 per cent in 2019. at was a result of the ma- jor change in demographics during the past seven years as more liberal laws were intro- duced to have a more inclusive yet diverse society. Now, we have more families with sin- gle parents, families headed by two unmarried partners, either of the opposite sex or the same sex, households that include one or more family members from a generation; adoptive families; foster fam- ilies; and families where chil- dren are raised by their grand- parents or other relatives. We moved from big, inter- connected, and extended fam- ilies, which in the mid 1970's helped protect the most vul- nerable people in society from the shocks of life, to smaller, detached nuclear families (a married couple and their chil- dren or the new combinations listed earlier). Now this pandemic has led us to restrict the family group to the bare minimum so as to protect ourselves from infec- tion. is has automatically given birth to the nuclear fam- ily structure. It is an intense unique set of relationships among, say, four people. If one relationship breaks down, there are no shock absorbers. In a nuclear family, the end of the marriage means the end of the family as it was previously understood. But while extended families have strengths, they can also be exhausting and stifling. ey allow little privacy; you are forced to be in daily inti- mate contact with people you didn't choose. ere's more stability but less mobility. Family bonds are thicker, but individual choice is dimin- ished. You have less space to make your own way in life. e pandemic is the Grinch that stole our tradition- al Christmas traditions. In the COVID scenario, during lockdown mothers spent a lot of time trapped inside their home raising their children and overseeing their online schooling. COVID, the Grinch, forced us to live through the most rapid change in the family's structure. e causes are eco- nomic, cultural, and institu- tional all at once. In conclusion, this year has extenuated the focus on the digital age where people grow- ing up in a nuclear family tend to have a more individualistic mindset, galvanised by the dictates of social media. Peo- ple with this mind-set tend to be less willing to sacrifice themselves for the sake of the family, and the result can be more family disruption. A merry Christmas to all. COVID-19: the Grinch who stole Christmas George Mangion George Mangion is a senior partner of an audit and consultancy firm, and has over 25 years experience in accounting, taxation, financial and consultancy services. His efforts have seen PKF being instrumental in establishing many companies in Malta and ensured PKF become one of the foremost professional financial service providers on the Island