Resurrecting the blog

I've been thinking for quite some time about resurrecting my blog but just haven't gotten around to it. But here I am, in the beautiful village of Ballyvaughan, County Clare, on the west coast of Ireland, over-looking Galway Bay with the time and the inclination and I have...Something 2 Say.

Many ask me, How did you find this place? Why do you go back each year? What draws you back? I will attempt to put into words, the answers to these questions and more reflections of how this place renews and fulfills me each year.

I, like many Americans, have a mixed bag of ethnicity: Irish, Scotch/Irish, German, English and even Cherokee Indian blood flowing through me. And , for all I know other strains of our rich blend of ethnic diversity. My Mother's side of the family had the German blood and some Scotch/Irish; my Daddy all the rest.

It was my Daddy who LOVED the Irish. He had many Irish friends, loved St. Patrick's Day, and inspired in me a love of all things Irish.  So, I grew up thinking the Irish were very special people, having caught the fever from Daddy.

In 2005, I came with a group from my church to the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) meeting in Birmingham, England, followed by tours of England, Wales and Ireland. From the first moment I landed on the Emerald Isle I was enchanted. There was something different about this place that drew me in. I only spent a very few days, visiting all the tourist spots, but promised myself then, that I would return and for a good long time!

I was thankful that although I had already lost Mother in 2004, at the time (2005), Daddy was still alive and alert enough to know where I was and be oh so happy for me to be experiencing his beloved Ireland. 

 I knew I would return to Ireland, after my caregiving days were over and I had time to re-group from the devastating loss of both my beloved parents within two years of each other. So after Daddy died in 2006, and I slowly worked through my shattered life (we had been a tight, inter-dependent threesome and now I felt like a 3-legged stool with 2 legs chopped off!), I began to plan my return.