Why did I write ‘Shine for Christmas’? What does the song say about me -Damian (Spiteri)? Is the song's relationship to me what caused its success?

These questions were the questions that were posed to me on Facebook in response to one of my posts about my song. I thought I would answer these questions in an in-depth way by means of this short article.

To answer these questions effectively though, first I need to clarify what Christmas means to me, or at least, what I understand Christmas to mean to me. Readers need to thereby know something more about Damian (Spiteri), i.e. about the song writer of Shine at Christmas. I will speak about myself through the following semi-autobiographical account.

As a young boy growing up, I first attended a school run by an Order of Nuns, the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary (kindly note the word Missionaries, for I will relate back to this later on in this writing) This was a mixed school (girls and boys). From the age of eleven onward, I then attended a school run by the Jesuits, a Roman Catholic order of priests who emphasize that boys become men when they understand that their scope in life is to become service leaders, or as they also put it ‘men for others.’ This school was an all-boys' school. At both schools, Christmas was a time when there were school plays. In many of the plays, the hero of the play (who incidentally many a time was me) was the person who reached out to help others who were in need. Sometimes, the hero of the play was Jesus in disguise.

Christmas was also a time when there would be the school parties. I do not have many recollections of them when I attended the nuns’ school, but when I attended the Jesuit school, I have to say that these parties were run in so orderly a fashion, it was hard for me or any of the other boys to have much fun. It was perhaps no coincidence that on turning thirteen or fourteen many of the boys would often take delight in running off to smoke a cigarette in the school yard, behind the backs of the teachers and mentors (in a place which was then called the ‘green area’ and where today a gym has been constructed), and I have to say that despite the disadvantages of smoking; in my case it served truly as a social activity. I was particularly generous with my cigarettes and this made me easily liked by the others. On meeting up with one of my friends, as adults, at a school reunion some twenty years later, my friend told me that it was I who had given him his first cigarette, taught him to inhale the smoke, and .... that he had enjoyed smoking ever since!! Oh well...... 

I am of course not suggesting that it was a bad school, over 95% of the boys in my school year ended up going to university, and this was at a time when it was extremely competitive to get into the university as only a certain number of students were accepted (there was a capping system in place). Rather, what I am saying is that the discipline was quite strict. 

Another thing that merits commenting on was that all the boys would be expected to attend Mass every day. I do not know if the priests wanted to make all the boys saints, but they were certainly a mile off when they organised the Mass in the lesson that immediately preceded the break.That was the time when some of the boys took turns at sitting at the back of the church. This would enable them to eat their lunch so that they would be able to have more time to play football during the break. 

What remains to me as the most striking part of my years at school is how the Jesuit priests spoke to the boys about the Missions, about the work they undertook in poorer regions of the world, and how important it was to them to spread Christ’s word around the globe, and to thereby spread the good news to all. I also remember clearly that at the end of our Christmas school parties there would always be a collection for the Missions. In some way or another, Christ, the Missions, or being of service to the other would be mentioned For some of the boys, school was particularly enjoyable. I remember when one of the boys called a female teacher ‘Ma’ (Mother), showing how pronounced his transference of the close relationship that he had with his mother was on his school life. Looking at the school from an adult’s perspective, I would say that the Jesuit priests were caring, dedicated teachers (even if they had their own ideas about how a school should be run).But that is..... as an adult!

Why did I write “Shine for Christmas?’ The answer to this question lies in my upbringing and my strong association of Christmas with acts of giving in my growing-up years. Christmas was a special time of the year to me as I grew up. At home, Christmas would be celebrated with gifts and with much love. At school. Christmas was a special time, since the priests and teachers interacted with me and my peers in a different way than they would for the rest of the school year. (The curriculum was very exam centered). At Christmas time, there was more interaction, more dialogue, and a way of teaching about altruism, understanding, compassion, and empathy than seemed to make more sense than in religious education lessons (of which there were an enormous amount). I associate sharing with Christmas not because it is restricted to the Christmas period but because to me Christmas is an important part of the year. This is something (a belief) I have carried with me since boyhood.

Songs like Shine at Christmas are Christmas songs for a variety of reasons. Primarily, they are Christmas songs because they glorify Christ. They are aimed at giving thanks and praise to Christ as King and Savior. Secondly, they are infused with pro-social values and are often written using powerful imagery to depict the social values that people associate with Christmas. Thirdly, they are usually infused with a Christmas sounding instrumental back-up, usually involving the sound of bells. Fourthly, they usually have a characteristically upbeat rhythm. So, what do we need Shine at Christmas for? In brief, we need it for one reason – to enhance the fun element at Christmas (even if it is in a very small - but possibly - very significant, way). All people, young and old want (and need) to enjoy Christmas. To enjoy Christmas, Christmas must be fun. What better way of making Christmas fun than by means of the use of music. And what does this say about Damian? It simply says that Damian is a fun-loving guy.

For further details about my song, kindly refer to https://www.damianspiteri.com