My Irish Eyes are Smiling
Because you're reading my newsletter
Welcome to E-Musings, week two!
Daylight savings time is here! No matter which camp you’re in (pro or con clock manipulation), you gotta admit it’s nice to be enjoying later sunsets…
Last summer in Lewes…
With Spring fast approaching, can Summer be far behind? My prime exercise time and place is the Rehoboth Beach DE boardwalk early in the mornings, and my constant companions are the podcasts I listen to while I perambulate (it’s a word, you can look it up!) Here are two of my favorites…
The Moth: This is one of several stellar storytelling podcasts. There’s just something about real people telling their true stories out loud that is so brave and so special (and often hilarious).
Radiolab: I confess to only recently taking much interest in the natural world, science, etc. Wow, where have they been keeping this fascinating stuff? Every week Radiolab’s team explores one topic, in depth, in a really engaging and thoughtful way. Here’s a link to an episode I loved, about the amazing baby blue blood of the horseshoe crab.
Watcha reading these days?
My friend Robin gave me Kelly Corrigan’s memoir Glitter and Glue, which I highly recommend. It’s a funny and poignant look at parent-child relationships, and how they change as we age.
My book club just discussed True Biz by Sara Novic. A novel set in a boarding school for the deaf, True Biz challenged many of my preconceptions about the deaf community and deaf culture—another great read.
In honor of St Patrick’s Day on Thursday…
Hard to believe we’re coming up on six years since Rose, Julie and I invaded Ireland. We spent 10 days driving all over the gorgeous and extremely green countryside (thanks to intrepid driver Jules). A favorite town was Dingle, in the west of Ireland, a mecca for traditional Irish music fans. We attended a wonderful concert at the Dingle Music Shop, where we heard Meabh and Matt perform this lively and lilting piece:
While in Dingle, we stayed at the BEST B&B, Coill en Rois (“Forest of the Roses” in Gaelic). I interviewed the adorable innkeeping couple Jimmy and Noreen for an article in The Heart of the Hotel.
And finally…
Inspirational Quote of the Week:
Every week I find a poem or other quote to share during shavasana, at the end of the Zoom yoga class I take (led by my dear friend, pastor and yoga teacher Pattie Loughlin). Here’s the quote from last Wednesday:
“The longer I live, the more deeply I learn that love — whether we call it friendship or family or romance — is the work of mirroring and magnifying each other’s light. Gentle work. Steadfast work. Life-saving work in those moments when life and shame and sorrow occlude our own light from our view, but there is still a clear-eyed loving person to beam it back. In our best moments, we are that person for another.”
--James Baldwin
Wishing you a week filled with light and love (and catching up on sleep)!