Reminiscing

Today has been one of those days where I have caught myself daydreaming. I tend to daydream a lot, especially when my mind is getting tired.

Today I have missed Ireland. For those of you who maybe read this and don't know I traveled to Ireland in the summer of 2003 and lived there from early June until the beginning of August. I think to date, it has been the best summer of my life. It had hard times. I got homesick and I dealt with spiritual warfare and living across the ocean from the place you call home, where the folks you love are... well it can be hard. But the experience was amazing.

Everyone should get to enjoy Ireland at least once in their lives. I was there two months and still didn't see it all. It has the most beautiful landscapes and sunsets that take your breath away. I sometimes joke that God created the rest of the world and saw that it was good and then decided to show off and He created Ireland. You'll often hear people comment "It's so green," and until you visit there you'll never really appreciate the truth behind that statement. Take the deepest green you've ever seen and multiply it by ten and maybe you'll get close. I remember when I arrived I was amazed at how sincere the people were. Now don't think that I mean before I went I thought they were an unsincere people. That is not the case. But, consider how often you run into someone and they ask "How are you?" and your answer most likely is "I'm good and you?" In Ireland try asking that question and you're likely to get the truth. You may hear about what ails them and not in a "woe is me" tone but a "you asked so i'll tell you" kind of tone. They mean what they say and they say what they mean. If they offer something to you, you take it... a cup of tea, a piece of chocolate. You take it because you know to refuse would just be rude. This can sometimes be difficult when you visit several people in one day and they all offer you tea or coffee. Next thing you know you're bouncing off the walls.

Here and there across the countryside, houses with thatched roofs do still exist. There are castle ruins strewn across the entire island, each with its own interesting story and each one more fascinating than the next. I often say that Dublin was my favorite part of living in Ireland. I lived with a wonderfully sweet lady named Florence in Tallaght. To get to Dublin I just walked to the corner and caught the bus. Thirty minutes later I was in a large city full of history. While Dublin is very historical and very fascinating, sadly, it is also very commercialized and aimed at tourists. Dang Americans. So now five years later, maybe I think staying in Donegal was my favorite. I lived with an American couple in a small town that still speaks Gaelic. You walk to town to get your groceries. You walk to the bank and the post office. On the way there, you're bound to pass someone returning from the market and you always speak. I remember the first time I was walking to the store and ran into a neighbor from down the street and I remembered enough Gaelic to say "How are you? I'm doing well. Thanks." I was so proud of myself and it felt so good to know watching video after video of the Irish language had paid off. And they appreciate that folks from outside the country have bothered to learn any of their very hard language.

Another favorite experience was working with kids at Drewstown House. The kids I worked with were so starved for attention and love. They were so excited that someone wanted to spend a week with them. That week was amazing. There were canoe rides and one very huge slip-n-slide made out of black plastic, dish washing detergent, and cold water. There were nightly devotions with stories and singing. A friend from here traveled with me when I went and that week were in charge of ten little girls. We had to be firm and make them listen. We had fun playing and goofing off which they enjoyed but when it came to go to sleep or time to quieten down... they couldn't stand us. (Kids are the same no matter where you go.) We left Drewstown house early on Saturday morning before the campers were awake. You can imagine the surprise when we were about to leave and there on the bottom of the stairs sat ten little girls who wanted to see us off.

I'm sorry if I'm boring you with all of this. I suppose I figure if I reminisce about it maybe I won't miss it as much. I should probably consider that it may have quite the opposite effect and I'll miss it even more.

I'll end this long rambling post with a plea. Something else I learned while in Ireland is that they are people starving for the truth. By the truth, I mean to hear about the forgiveness our heaven father offers. St. Patrick was passionate about Christianity reaching Ireland and he did amazing work. There are signs of his ministry around the country but there are also many signs of the ancient druids and some of the other religions which have led the people astray. They are a people in need of a Savior. There are some strong churches but they are few and far between. There is one large one in Dublin where we were able to worship and I also taught basketball (I'll save that for another post) at a church plant started by the first. So my plea, pray for the people of Ireland. Pray for the missionaries who are sacrificing to serve there. Pray that the Irish Christians will reach out to their fellow countrymen. And as always, pray for continued peace between Ireland and Northern Ireland.

slan (goodbye in Gaelic)

cb