Irish character, Edna O’Brien
“When anyone asks me about the Irish character, I say look at the trees. Maimed, stark and misshapen, but ferociously tenacious.” (Edna O’Brien) © Willeke Van Eeckhoutte and Ireland, Multiple Sclerosis & Me, 2011-2012.
Einstein
I will not write much over the next few weeks but I wanted to leave my blog with this quote to keep us all going until I am fit enough to write again! The quote below is one of my favourites for 2 reasons: a) Albert Einstein is always right and b) should Einstein not be right he still knows how to say it beautifully! “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity, and I’m not sure about the universe.” © Willeke Van Eeckhoutte and Ireland, Multiple Sclerosis & Me, 2011-2012. Unauthorised use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Willeke Van…
The Celtic Tree of Life… sort of!
Ever hugged a tree? No? Okay… Maybe you’ve thought about hugging a tree, or something that looked like a tree? The ancient Celts – there are very few real ones left in Ireland -adored and believed fairies lived in trees, assigning them special powers. I love trees myself, often strong and unwilling to move whatever goes against them, rejuvenating themselves year after year. Ireland was tree-paradise, but once the English set foot on our shores, and saw that Irish trees would make for better ships, their naval fleet happily sang chop-ahoy-chop-chop-them- oaks. In short: aside from having to sacrifice land, language, music, traditions, and food, Ireland had to offer their sacred trees to the enemies of the day. Now, all that aside, I love to think I have some Celtic…