Why Are We in Ireland

"Why are we in Ireland?" people ask. I wish I knew how to answer that.

I would like to say that it is the beautiful rainbow showcasing the sky out the glass door of our bedroom.

Or the way the sun rises and sets on Galway Bay, every day with its own special beauty, unduplicated, unanticipated.

Perhaps we came to Ireland because we knew how the sun would reflect off the modern windows of an ancient tower.

Then there was the conference on spirituality that just happened to be at the right time and the right place while we were in this mythic Celtic land. Or the annual conference on astronomy.

But perhaps the best way to talk about why we are in Ireland is to sit by the Bay. For if you sit long enough and let the tide drain the waters out to the vast ocean, you will see a gigantic boulder field, a collection of great stones that you would never guess existed when they are deluged by high tide twice a day. Who would guess what emerges from the great sea?

So we are in Ireland, not because we know what is here, but because we are led to wait to see what God uncovers for us here in the great mystery of life. The most important things in life, do not happen while we are in control. They are a gift that appears above an horizon that we cannot touch. We wander hopefully. We wait with eyes as wide open as we can hold them. But for this, you need not fly across the sea. You only need to be awake to the gifts each day discloses.

As we await the Easter message in the morning, we are confident that in spite of the great sorrow in the world and our own misgivings, God is always waiting to uncover the great boulders of his love hidden just below the surface of the most common, ordinary events of our most precious lives.

Happy Easter and love to all.

Fe and Shawn.