Happy St. Patrick's Day

On this Saint Patrick's Day, I'd like to give a "tip of the hat" to my Irish ancestors. There aren't many of them, and I have to go back many generations, but the Matchetts and the McBrides immigrated to the United States from Ireland back in the early 1800's. I love these two families, mostly because they raised their families right here in Pennsylvania, not far from where we live now.

How thankful I am for the Irish (more so) because of John's family. Obviously, the Irish blood runs thick and strong through their veins. His family left Ireland during the potato famine, and because it was cheaper to sail to Canada than to the United States, they ended up in Ontario. The Kennedys stayed there until John's dad moved to Michigan from Canada (and was actually an illegal alien for many years before Ronald Reagan made it all official for him).

As John says, he can't always help the way he acts: he's Irish for heaven's sake! Hot temper, loss of patience, like a bull in a china shop frequently. He says that he's never felt more at home in a place that we have visited than he feels in Ireland. I like to look at John's personality from the perspective that John can't help but work, and work hard. I believe that a few of those Irish drops of blood have led him to the prosperous and blessed life that he has now.

Dia na hÉireann!