My memory serves me well with a childhood recollection of a white ‘tam’, fashioned from pure lamb’s wool and even a lingering scent of the animal to remind one of the hat’s humble origins. Every year, around Christmas time, our American-Irish family received a shipment of tams, scarves and socks made in Ireland. Who made these goods was never quite clear – it was a 3rd cousin or the friend of a friend of a relative…what mattered is that me and my siblings were well-equipped for a winter of cold morning walks to school and snowy afternoons, when we built snowmen or hurried toward home and hot cocoa.

To be honest, my sisters and I did not always welcome these woolen hats of earlier times. They were homely items, made with care, but they scratched like the dickens! And I already mentioned the ‘lamby’ odor. Fortunately, this is a thing of the past. Today’s Irish hats and scarves are pleasantly soft and there’s no olfactory link to the wooly creature it came from. It’s nice to know that Irish craftspeople have found a way to preserve old design traditions and yet innovate on them.

But one thing hasn’t changed. As children, we were always aware of our Irish heritage. The link wasn’t too far, when Michael Philbin came from County Mayo as a young boy to live with relatives in America. My father did not wallow in nostalgia for this past – but his Irishness was never the less a source of pride. When I got older, I was happy to visit Ireland and learn more about our family and the Irish culture. I have a scarf that attracts admiring glances and when I explain that it’s from Ireland, it’s a nice affirmation of my cultural mosaic and how I can share that identity with others.