My Tír na nÓg

To Patricia A. McLaughlin from Dan,

her husband, February 14, 2022

Though this poem may…

Saint Valentine

Born: 226 AD, Terni, Italy

Died: February 14, 269 AD, Rome, Italy

Full name: Valentine of Terni 

Valentine was a Christian priest who had also worked as a doctor and ministered to persecuted Christians and Romans alike. He lived in Italy during the third century AD and served as a priest in Rome. Historians don’t…

'Paddy and Paddy'

On this day January 7, 1841, John "Red" Kelly, the father of the infamous Australian outlaw Ned Kelly, was sentenced to seven years transportation for stealing two pigs in an effort to feed his starving family. The judge handed down the harsh sentence at the Cashel quarter sessions in County Tipperary. He…

Home to some of the most unique superstitions in the world and a whole host of traditions dating back centuries, the arrival of a new year has always been a time of hope and excitement in Ireland.

Irish New Years Eve traditions in Ireland long ago were important in that they determined the luck of…

“The wran, the wran, the king of all birds,

on Stephen's day was caught in the furze.

His body is little but his family is sweet

so rise up landlady and give us a treat.

And if your treat be of the best

your soul in heaven can then find its rest.

And if your treat be…

This is my first Blog post, so I'll start with an introduction, and future blogs will just be about the episodes and individuals

Nation of Storytellers Podcast

I have started a podcast that aims to capture the stories and storytellers of Ireland, in the hope that it…

Kissing a wife or lover under the mistletoe at Christmas is derived from an old Roman custom that honored the god Saturn. The Romans associated mistletoe with peace, love, and understanding and hung it over doorways to protect the household, as well as protection from witches and demons. Hanging…

In addition to offering a wide-range of holiday recipes in my new cookbook, Festive Flavors of Ireland, you’ll also enjoy reading about many long-standing, often bygone, Irish holiday traditions at the end of each chapter. Brian Nolan, a Loughrea, County Galway native,…

In the early evening they would gather in the grove, beneath the sheltering embrace of the sacred white oak tree. The Master had carefully dowsed the area, and had chosen it for the serene beauty and peaceful aura. The salmon-filled, crystal clear waters of the river wound a course through the…

I've been down in the green valley, the holy place.

Slieve Gullion (from Irish: Sliabh gCuillinn, meaning "hill of the steep slope" or Sliabh Cuilinn, "Culann's mountain") is an extinct volcanic mountain in the south of County Armagh, Ireland. The mountain is the heart of the Ring of Gullion and is the highest point in the county, with an elevation…

A friend of mine, an archeologist, …

I took this photograph in Galway around 1982. 

The two, twin, cozy cottages always caught my eye, when I was headed out after…

We're celebrating the amazing Saint Brigid, Ireland's second patron saint, with a 20% discount on this beautiful St. Brigid's Cross.

Handmade with love by Callura Pottery, County Clare. Usually €25.00, special offer €20.00. Offer ends 1st…

A quiet thread of melancholy hovered over me as I made my way to breakfast on the last morning of my Clare-Conemara-Galway tour. And even though I’m glad to be home and see my family again, I’ve left a…

The final day of my Wild West Clare-Connemara-Galway Tour was a quiet wrap-up to a week of history, myth, legend, song and breathtaking sights.

But quiet doesn’t mean dull! Far from it, in fact. It was a perfect day for anyone who,…

I have discovered Heaven.

Another beautiful, sunny day on the …

A heat wave has hit Ireland this week, and I’ve managed to acquire a bit of a sunburn…and I’m having the time of my life!

Today I realized a long-held dream. I took a journey to the top of the world, the edge of the earth, with the hot sun beating down…

A scorcher in the Wild West of Ireland today, as the country enters a heat wave and I headed out upon a journey of spirituality and self-discovery.

Stony outcrop of the Burren, stones in every fertile place. ~ John Betjeman

The…