May the road rise to greet you
May the wind be ever at your back
And may the Lady shelter you in the palm of Her hand
Slightly altered traditional Irish blessing, with apologies if the slight alteration offends anyone, though I have a pretty good idea of my readers, and I doubt very much that such a thing would make them do much else than smile ruefully.
I’ve always loved St Patrick’s Day. I have a lot of fond childhood memories that involve carefully cutting out shamrocks and unwrapping perfectly preserved green hats that had been packed away in boxes in my Gran’s basement for the duration of the year. I don’t know what happened to all of those decorations, but I think most of them now reside in my own attic.
Anyway…despite being a proud Canadian, I have enough Irish blood in me to do justice to several pints of Guinness (even though I don’t drink the stuff) – and for years I’ve worn a Claddagh ring on my right hand, turned various ways over the years as well, but always there. Apparently I’m a walking recessive trait, a throw-back to my father’s Irish roots, bearing everything except the red hair and in the summer even that changes. Well, and in the winter I highlight it, so it’s a moot point.
How does one handle the Wearing O’ The Green on a ship? Well, normally it’s not a big deal honestly, there’s usually a party of sorts in the upstairs bar, and a theme to the decorations, and that’s that. This year however, circumstances this year dictated a change, and we had to move the party to the main show lounge instead. Read: what was once a casual party became a Ball, in all but actual name.
In reality, a party is precisely what we all – guests and crew alike – need right now, we’re in a definite slump, and sadly it’s started to effect a lot of us more than we would care to admit. Nothing like shamrocks and leprechauns to pick up your spirits after a few days in mist-engulfed Vietnam! For the first time in a while, it feels like there’s a genuine positive energy flow on the ship, which makes it easier on everyone in general.
And yes, I will wear green. How could I not? When I was in Hong Kong, I managed to track down one pale green Oriental style dress, pair it with gold accessories and green nail polish and I get to be a dryad for the evening.
Well I figure I can’t exactly pull off being a leprechaun, since I’ve rarely heard of a female leprechaun, so dryad it is 😉
One of these days, I will actually book a proper vacation to Ireland, I’ve looked into it so many times that I’ve lost track. When I first went to England I was determined to fly by way of Ireland, only to find that the difference in price was so extreme that I couldn’t justify the cost. I used to spend hours at night staring at vacation packages on my laptop in my flat while I was at college, trying to figure out of if I could make enough tips to go for the weekend. I never could.
So it hovers there, a place that exists mostly in my imagination, as I’m sure the Ireland I daydream of no longer exists, having been taken over by big cities and cosmopolitan society…but I still daydream of it. It still calls to me, always has, probably always will.
For now though, I remain,
Ever yours,
Bright Blessings
Shaughnessy