St. Patrick’s Day

March 17, 2014 by Patrick Mooney 3 Comments

http://ants-and-grasshoppers.blogspot.com.

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I’m taking time off my usual post today to talk about the greenest day of the year, also my saint’s day- St. Patrick’s Day. If you aren’t familiar with the history- long story short he converted Ireland to Christianity from Paganism.  Its definitely a day where if you aren’t Irish, you’re really pretending poorly that you are and getting massively intoxicated without cause or reason. But on a light note- let’s talk about Ireland and its beauty. Of all the places in the world I have been, Ireland is still the most beautiful in my mind. I’m not saying this because its my ancestry, but because its the truth, it really is THAT green! I went in May of 2006 with my family and left a piece of my heart there among the crags of the Barren, the stones of Blarney, and the heathers in Kerry. Ireland is reminiscent of my home in Kentucky, so its really not a surprise that leaving Ireland felt like leaving home. The climate, scenery, and people are just as wonderful, if not more so than in Kentucky.

Ireland is not just beautiful, it is quite uniquely fragrant. Its not just the grass, fresh air, or old churches giving the smell either. Its in the rain, the wind, the very earth of Ireland. The Irish spirit is everywhere, and it effects all the senses, even the nose! But all the former do conglomerate to give Ireland a particularly fresh scent. When I visited in Late May, the lilacs were still blooming in Dublin, and the honeysuckles were blooming in Galway. Spring lasts particularly long in Ireland it seems, as the trees were just barely leafed out and the grass was still verdantly green…ok well the grass is always verdantly green there, but still. It was interesting to fly into Dublin, because it looks almost exactly like flying into Bluegrass airport, with the fenced farms and blooming hedges in spring. In Ireland, its the Hawthorne tribe, but in Kentucky its usually bush honeysuckle (noxious weed) and black locust. There is certainly an Irish feeling to my home state- perhaps that is why my Irish ancestors settled there years ago.

In May it seems everything hits your nose in Ireland, as everything is in bloom. Gorses (Ulex sp.) are perfuming the air with their coconut-like fragrance, as are the Hawthorns and blackthorns (Crataegus sp.) with their bittersweet, privet-like fragrance, and the various heathers (Calluna sp. and Erica sp.) with a light resinous sweetness that makes for good honey. Most fragrant were the grasses at the President’s estate in the large Phoenix park outside Dublin. I’m not sure what genus it could nearly be, other than its the same familiar sweetness that hay exudes and that I often smell in large parks and farms in my own home of Kentucky. Perhaps it is a weed that is so fragrant of hay there- like something in the clover tribe. I really cannot be sure, but it was quite comforting.

Regardless, there were multitudes of parks and gardens in Ireland with many fragrant plants- roses, valerian, various herbs, grasses, shrubs and trees. Every part of the island is differently fragranced, as are the cities. My nose gravitates toward the freshness of Kerry and its windswept coasts, but Galway was equally sweet with the honeysuckles and clematis blooming everywhere. I couldn’t even tell you which species they were- as I knew not plants nearly as well as I do now. Perhaps my favorite scent of Ireland was just the air itself. Whether imparted with the scent of turf smoke, (turf=peat, and is the same source of sphagnum moss) a fresh Irish rain shower, the scents of grasses, flowers, or the ocean; it never ceased to be wonderful to the nose. Ireland is certainly my heart’s second home, well perhaps save for the monastery I go to I guess.

You can check out some Irish wildflowers here: http://www.calflora.net/ireland/

Lastly, I present to you an old Irish Blessing:

May love and laughter light your days,
and warm your heart and home.
May good and faithful friends be yours,
wherever you may roam.
May peace and plenty bless your world
with joy that long endures.
May all life’s passing seasons
bring the best to you and yours!