{Sean, Nell, Tess, Jim and I at the Cliffs of Moher in the fall of 2003. The weather was very...Irish.}
I think everyone is Irish on this day, whether a little bit or not at all, people are wearing green. There was a time when our whole family was in green with shamrocks on their faces, whether they wanted to or not. Jim was the most Irish person I knew, even though there was a wee bit of French in his DNA. From drinking green beer to admiring the green in the river in Chicago, over the years we celebrated in every way you could, but as our children arrived and we got older wearing of the green was about all we could muster. About the only place people do not celebrate St Pat's is Ireland, which was a great disappointment to Jim and I when we first visited the Emerald Isle. St Patrick's Day is in the middle of The Lenten Season and although we gave each other a dispensation, when traveling, which allowed us to imbibe, there was very little drinking/celebrating.
About 15 years ago, trying to relieve my Christmas schedule, I made the decision to send family cards in March for St. Patrick's Day. It has become a tradition, I love it and for the most part people look forward to them.
After all, the best part of being Irish is the sparkle and wink in the eye , the playfulness and the pure joy of heart. We can all have those, if we want.
{My chauffeurs at the Shannon Airport last August}
P.S. I promised to tell you what we gave the boys for Valentines Day-a Hi Little One designed '#Brothers' T-shirt, a box of Coco Pebbles and a spoon with 'Cereal Killer' engraved on it. My kids eat A LOT of cereal.
Bullet Points