Home for ‘The Gathering’…

I’d woken up to a spooky misty morning up on the Cliffs of Moher,and having packed up, when for another walk above the cliffs, to see the Puffin colony – they’d been ‘out fishing’ yesterday, and returned in the night…

as I strode above their colony on a spur of rock jutting out into the Ocean, I could just see them as dots, in and amongst the clumps of grass, as the mist swirled all around, sometimes clearing and giving me a view along to the distant tower I’d walked to in the dark last night…

then it was back to Wally, and on my way along the coast of Galway bay and along ‘The Burren’, a famous area where the limestone pavement sits on top of the ground, as the water swirls beneath forming great underground caverns

I continued heading North, then started inland,rather than on the coast towards Attymass passing Knock shrine as I drove along the ‘N17’ and as I neared Attymass I started to recognise the roads, particularly as I turned off the main road, onto the quiet side roads, each one telling me their own story – just as I turned into the side roads, what came on the radio ? - ‘Home for The Gathering’ by Derek Ryan, a record I’ve enjoyed listening to this year…perfect timing ! The satnav got me to Attymass church…and I had to sit there for a minute, gathering my thoughts and heading for Ballycong…which I found unerringly –perfect, my Angel navigator got me there easily and I pulled into my new home for the next couple of weeks – a freshly mown field next to my brother Anthony and Maggie’s place, just up the lane from where my Dad was born.. a refreshing cup of tea, then a walk  round the lake opposite… before ‘haymaking’, or more correctly gathering up all the mown grass, with the help of a neighbour Meighal, into 2 small ‘haycocks’…just like they used to do ! I even got a blister raking the grass …what a start !

We all went into Enishcrone for a great fish evening meal at ‘The Waterfront’ Hotel overlooking the bay, with the hot sun reflecting off the sea.. and after dinner a walk along the pier watching the sun go down in a fiery blaze , then back to Ballycong for a nightcap, and retiring to Wally for a peaceful nights sleep in the silence of Ireland…Goodnight from the homeland !