Dear Editor,

A few years ago I discovered the song Driving Home for Christmas by Chris Rea. In 2019 I played it every night for about three weeks right into Christmas Day. My wife had to ask me, “Wait, him nuh reach yet?”

It is a song that resonates with a number of people.

I have watched a number of video clips of the song, but the one that I like is the one which has the singer travelling through a largely rural area under perilous, snowy conditions; however, he hopes to get to the freeway. It is Christmas Eve. It is getting dark and he isn’t sure when he’ll arrive, but he’s sure he’ll get there and anticipates seeing the surprised looks on the faces of his loved ones.

The gravelly voice of the singer contributes to the authenticity of the song, which is about the drive. We never see the arrival, but we are treated to the treacherous conditions he braves as he strives to get home in time for Christmas.

But it is also a song about home and family. I become nostalgic when I listen to it.

It reminds me of the five years I spent over 8,000 km from home.

It reminds me of the years I drove to Hanover or Portland to spend Christmas away from home.

It reminds me of the year when a friend of ours passed by our home on Christmas morning to borrow money to get home to south Manchester. Struggling with baggage and two young children, she had been picked as she boarded the bus.

It reminds me of the French young lady and her Jamaican husband who were hit by a truck on Melrose Hill as they travelled to spend time with relatives in the early 1990s. (She survived; her husband didn’t).

And it takes me back to 1987 when a “Quarter Million” crashed by Cremo. Three people, including a soldier, lost their lives on the spot. The bus, which should never have left the Kingston Metropolitan Transport Region, was on its way to Savanna-la-Mar.

Inspiration for this song actually came in 1978 as Rea’s wife drove him home in her battered Austin Mini from Abbey Road Studios in London to Middlesbrough. They got stuck in heavy traffic as snow fell and Rea looked at the other motorists who all looked miserable. It was a trip that would normally take 2 1/2 hours, but on that day it took them between five and six hours.

This song is about a journey.

Over 453 individuals have so far perished on our roads and others will not make it home this Christmas. Others haven’t made it for various reasons.

My beloved country is on a journey. Will we attain our desired goals any time soon?

Norman W M Thompson

norm74160@gmail.com