Sir, – I note that An Garda Síochána is switching to baseball-style caps (News, January 25th). Gone are the iconic hats we’ve all known forever. Everything seems to be going fiercely casual these days – maybe that’s a good thing, but it’s hard not to feel nostalgic. It reminds me of my own hat-and-uniform days back in the day. I was part of a shiny new crew of student nurses at Ardkeen Hospital in Waterford. Our uniforms were the epitome of pride. Honestly, I’m pretty sure they could’ve stood up on their own, they were that starched.
And those hats? Oh, they sat proudly on our heads, serving absolutely no functional purpose whatsoever, unless you count adding an extra layer of formality to our already polished look.
As time went on, the uniform code became a little more relaxed (thankfully!), but at that time we strutted around every day looking like we could’ve taken on the world, if the world didn’t involve practical tasks like making beds and numerous caring tasks that involved a lot of movement.
Now I wonder if we have gone too casual. Maybe there’s a sweet spot between looking smart and being comfortable. Somewhere in the middle, there’s got to be a balance. – Yours, etc,
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BERNIE KIRWAN,
Gorey,
Co Wexford.
