I am among the gazillion people who, when looking for inspiration, turn to the Book of Psalms. For you, LORD, have delivered me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living.~Psalm 116:8-9 NIV Walking in the land of the living…I…
Author: Cindy Thomson
Irish Organizations in America
When the 18th century Irish settled in America, it wasn’t long before they formed organizations to aid those who came after them. The first organization (that was recorded) was called the Charitable Irish Society and was formed on St. Patrick’s Day in 1737 in Boston. Their purpose was two fold: First: to cultivate a spirit…
Happy Labor Day from The Carmina Gadelica
No matter what type of work you do, I pray it’s fulfilling, fruitful, and long-lasting. The hurricane that just hit Florida had us wondering … would my mother-in-law’s place be impacted again. My husband and his brother just finished a lot of grueling work on it. Well, thankfully her place was far south of the…
Ireland’s Matron Saint Gets Her Day in 2023!
This is the talk I gave at festivals in the summer of 2023 St. Brigid is one of the three patron saints of Ireland. The other two are St. Patrick and St. Columba (or Columcille in Irish.) She lived from about 451 to 525 (or 524 if you ask the people in Ireland. Next year…
Reek Sunday
Today thousands of pilgrims are climbing a mountain in Ireland, as they have been doing for an amazing 5,000 years! Over the course of a year, it’s estimated that one million visitors make the climb. The mountain is Croagh Patrick. It’s approximately 2,500 feet, located in County Mayo. On Reek Sunday, the last Sunday in…
The Star of the County Down
Scroll down for the lyrics. Near Banbridge town, in the County Down One morning in July Down a boreen green came a sweet colleen And she smiled as she passed me by. She looked so sweet from her two white feet To the sheen of her nut-brown hair Such a coaxing elf, I’d to shake…
Finding God in the Now
Benediction of a Day George MacLeod (1895-1991) To take a natural analogy, there is a living flower. You want to have it, so you pluck it. But, by your act of plucking, it dies. You are fascinated by a sparkling running stream, a living stream of water. But, if you grasp it, it runs through…
Book Review: Ireland’s Pilgrim’s Paths, Walking the Ancient Trails by Darach MacDonald
When I was in Dublin I visited a small indie bookshop called The Winding Stair. I was just looking up their website to share and discovered there is a restaurant upstairs! Up the winding stairs. How did I miss that??? Probably because it was my first day in Ireland (thus no sleep!) and I was…
Glendalough, Valley of Two Lakes
I have been wanting to blog about sites on my last trip to Ireland ever since I got back! So sorry it’s taken months for me to get to this (other obligations) but I’m happy to start sharing! Glendalough is a popular tourist destination, and it’s not far from Dublin, but this was my first…
Happy St. Brendan’s Day!
Amazon affiliate links are used, which help support the blog but do not cost you more to use. He’s one of the most interesting Irish saints, in my opinion, and there are plenty! Today is his feast day, a fine time to chat a bit about the man. He’s most famous for his voyage, which…
