St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day is celebrated by the Irish and Irish at Heart in big cities and small towns alike with parades, "wearing of the green," music and songs, Irish food and drink, and activities for kids such as crafts, coloring and games. Its a time for fun. Some communities even go so far as to dye rivers or streams green!

How ironic is it that Ireland's patron saint wasn't even born on the island? St. Patrick was born with the given name Macwyn Succat around A.D. 385 in Scotland. It wasn't until he was kidnapped and enslaved by Irish bandits that he was brought to Ireland.

Popular myth speculates that St. Patrick chased all of the snakes from Ireland. In reality, there were never any snakes on the island. This myth is considered a metaphor for converting pagans and Druids to Catholicism and "chasing" them from Ireland.

Shamrock, or just sham? It's been told that St. Patrick used the three leaves of the shamrock to represent the Trinity (The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit). This was never found in his writings, so is unsubstantiated.

Even though he is a Catholic saint, Patrick was actually born to a Roman Christian family. After six years in captivity, Patrick was said to have had religious dreams that told him to escape his captors and convert the people of Ireland to Catholicism.

Well now St. Patrick's Day wouldn't exist if not for the man himself! But how much do we know about him? Did you know that he spent six years of slavery in Ireland until he escaped and undertook religious training abroad?

Now you know.

St Patrick's Day is for thinking about our Saint as well as the time to think of loved ones across the water.

So, here's a St. Patrick's poem inspired by greetings from St. Patrick's Day.
For mine...

I could search Ireland from shore to shore
And find no one else is so adore
From the Aran isles in Galway Bay
To the Eastern Coast and the town of Bray
In Tara Hill, Kanturk or Mountbellew
Not a soul around can compare to you
You're my love and that's no blarney
Just thinking of you makes me happy.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day :)

(I hope Yex saw that 'DRINK RESPONSIBLY' there.)

Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig!

May all of you have the blessings from St.Patrick.