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St. Patrick's Day and the journey of life...

3/14/2015

2 Comments

 
by Gwendolyn M Plano
My husband and I traveled to Ireland last November. The memories of its green fields dotted with sheep, coastlines rugged with mountains stretching high, remain vivid in the chambers of my heart.

I didn’t see any leprechauns on this trip. But, I didn’t look for them either. I was captivated by the beauty of the landscape – and the people.  They stole my heart and transformed my vision.

On this trip, my normally busy mind (the planner me) quieted, and I saw a world sometimes hidden from me. The Irish soda bread, the walks along the craggy terrain, the celebrative toasts with friends—opened my eyes and prompted reverie.

St. Patrick’s Day brings me back to this fall journey.

I’m reminded of my ancestors crossing the seas. Away from their birth home, away from everything familiar, they traveled in search of their hopes and dreams. Some became indentured servants, some became farmers, and a few became ministers or teachers like me.  

Don’t we all do the same—travel in search of our dreams?

Whether we have known the comforts of life or the pangs of hunger, aren’t we all charged to find our way? Isn’t that our destiny?  

The feast of St. Patrick is for me a celebration of the resilience of the human spirit, and of a man who, through faith, humility and determination, symbolically leads us even today.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!



2 Comments
Lene Fogelberg link
3/15/2015 01:07:13

Thank you for sharing such a beautiful, inspiring post about the journey of life and to travel in search of our dreams!

Reply
Jennifer Jensen link
3/16/2015 04:22:26

Lovely, Gwen. We also were back in Ireland last fall - wouldn't it be funny if we crossed paths!

Reply



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Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way. ―Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning


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