An Irish family story of the Bridgets McDermott

In genealogical lingo, the family tree is depicted as spreading upward, the branches holding the knowledge of past and present generations. As a metaphor, though, I prefer to look not to the branches but to the unseen roots for the strength of the tree above. Roots provide the nurturing foundation and even – if I may borrow the concept of Peter Wohlleben in his book “The Hidden Life of Trees” – communicate with one another for protection and safety. It’s intriguing to think of all those tangled family roots that make up each of us today supporting one another generation…Continue Reading

Thoughts on bravery

It happened again just the other day. I was off on one of my local adventures, bound and determined to find the ruins of a castle I’d seen peeking through the trees, across a field, up just ahead if only I could find it. As I walked, I heard the loud rumble of an engine unbound by the muffle of a hood. Not long thereafter, the most unusual sight greeted me. A middle-aged man on a four-wheeler – half fire-engine red, half spray-paint gold – drove my way, a laughing three-month-old baby sitting on his lap. We waved and he…Continue Reading

An Irish woman of substance

Hi, readers. I have settled in a bit here in Corofin, and while life is never boring it has taken on a tinge of predictability. So I have decided to turn my attention in upcoming blogs less to memoir and more to some of the fascinating tidbits I’ve learned from my, admittedly, limited travel in Ireland. The journalist and student in me never tires of undertaking research, digging deeper, to gain a richer understanding of the places where I’ve visited. And I’d like to share some of these thoughts with you, in hopes that if you do come, or come…Continue Reading

Clarity in Corofin and the Burren

Dia dhuit from Corofin, Ireland, “the gateway to the Burren.” When last I wrote, I was ending my two-week quarantine and heading to Ennis, the County Clare seat and a thriving small city of around 30,000. The center of Ennis is a delightful place, narrow streets streaming seemingly pell-mell from the center square where stands an imposing monument to the great 19th century Irish political leader Daniel O’Connell, The Liberator. He also has a street named after him, as does Charles Stewart Parnell, revered for advocating Home Rule for Ireland. Of the many truths about Ireland that I am absorbing…Continue Reading

Living in patchwork green

              Tom Neilan is a spry 88 years old, with truly a twinkle in his eyes and a ready smile on a craggy farmer’s face. Wearing a worn workshirt and a cap soft with age, he seems to me as much a part of the land he owns and works as the sheep and cattle there. His farm, some 100 acres in all, surrounds the thatched-roof cottage where I have been living in quarantine since arriving in Ireland June 22. I first met Tom on the one-lane road down the way, driving his ancient, rumbling tractor that I could easily…Continue Reading

The adventure begins

Mine is the story of an everyday life that is about to take a turn toward the extraordinary. Within days, I will board an airplane from the U.S. bound for Ireland, a place I will soon call home. I know few people there. I haven’t traveled frequently to the “ould sod” like so many who know its nooks and crannies. I don’t have a lot of money and never have. I am long divorced, recently retired, fortunate to be strong, healthy and wiser than ever before. I think I know myself, and yet I know the person who has lived…Continue Reading