A Christmas message from the mayor of Malvern Julian Roskams

MALVERN is a special place at Christmas.

The Christmas lights are switched on across our town, shopkeepers dress their windows in imaginative and enticing ways, and at carol concerts in schools and churches we engage in our annual bout of community singing.

Then there are the office parties and nights out.

But look more closely, and for many the holiday allows us a rare chance to take our foot off the accelerator.

Many of us are so busy we often don’t get the chance to look around and truly appreciate we are part of a community.

Each of us depends on one another – whether it is our families, our neighbourhoods, perhaps a church group or some other society.

Christmas gives us the time to reflect on how lucky we are to have one another and to look out for those who have no one or are otherwise in need. So, as the lights come down from the trees, and we put away the tinsel for another year – let’s make a promise to one another.

That the Christmas spirit is something we nurture and cherish all year round.

Happy Christmas to all.