Hollie Gilson

For six months, I worked in a convenience store along the quays, and it was the most eye-opening job I’ve ever had. I saw all of life at that time. We had no security guard, and the owner told us that it was our job to get back anything stolen. One time I found myself running after a guy who had stolen a bottle of beer! I’d see the same people coming in for their daily bottles of wine, and these could be well-dressed office people. Not everyone struggling with an addiction looks rough. Some would be spending their last few euro on a naggin of vodka. It often happened that someone’s bank card was declined. They would ask if they could try it again and then again, and it still wouldn’t work. One time a lady said, “Okay, never mind”, walked around the shop, and tried to pocket something before walking out. It’s incredibly sad. A vast amount of work needs to be done with poverty and addiction in this country.

I don’t work on the quays anymore, but I volunteered for a while at an antique furniture shop on the same street as my art studio. It was my second sitting room for four years, and I would never come back from college without going in. I’ve met many musicians and creatives and got to know the locals by working there. There’s an older man called John Joe who passes every day. He is a really sweet guy. We have chairs outside, and sometimes we’ll sit and chat, and other times if someone is hanging around that looks like they’re up to no good, John Joe will stay and make sure I’m okay.

I have lived in Dublin 8 for the last few years. My ancestors on my Mums side are from here, and the area has so much history. I studied at NCAD (National College of Art and Design) and am fascinated that my grandfather was born in the same building. It used to be a fire station, and when Edward Doyle, my great grandfather worked there as a fireman, the family lived upstairs. He was awarded multiple medals for bravery; the Kings Police Medal for entering the hold of the S.S. War Cypress and saving six workmen who were overcome by gas; and a Dublin Fire Brigade Chevron for the time he saved a mother and her three children from a burning building by using his body as a human ladder for them to climb down when the ladder wouldn’t reach.

I think a lot about my ancestors walking around here and love that I found my way back. The Liberties is where I call home, and no matter where I am in the world, it will always be special. I feel safe here, but the area is changing. The biggest problem with gentrification is that they’re knocking down houses and flats where generations have lived for hundreds of years. There is a massive increase in high-rise hotels and expensive student accommodations.

Recently I was on my way to meet friends and took a shortcut through an alleyway. A woman was sitting on the ground, looking very solemn. She started talking, and I was sure she would ask me for money, but instead, she said, “Hey Luv, have you ever felt like you want to give up and it’s all too much?” I said, “Yeah, I have”. The sun came out, heated us up, and a thought came to me. “But now and again, the sun comes out, and you can feel it on your face, and it reminds you that things can always get better”. I don’t know if she took that in, but she gave me a look. She held this big sea shell and said, “I have this shell I robbed from one of the antique shops. I think it’s really special and expensive. Do you want to listen?” So I listened to her shell, and it was amazing. It was making all these sounds, and I was thinking, wow! Then she said, “I’m going to do the right thing and bring it back cos I feel bad for robbing it”. I said, “well, l, I think you should because you will probably feel better about yourself”. She asked me my name and said how nice it was to meet me. If you take the time to stop and engage, you can get some golden moments of humanity. I assumed that lady was looking for money, but she only wanted a bit of human connection”.

Hollie is originally from Clonmacnoise, now living in Dublin.