Irish Spirit

I was 19 years old when James Joyce's "Finnegan's Wake" was assigned reading. I have to confess it wasn't the only time I went to Cliff Notes. Joyce can be a tough read, but my recent trip has me thinking I should revisit it.

I did do a little homework and found a reputable newspaper report that says, "wakes have become very rare since the mid 70's." Hmmm?

I don't know whether that was just inaccurate, or we stumbled on to a trend reversal.

Sitting in our friend Cheri's family room every morning listening to the radio? All normal programming would come to a halt for "THE DEATH REPORT."




It consists of announcements of all the people who've died over the past 24 hours. There are brief obits, and then times and locations for wakes, services (almost always Catholic), and burials.

It turns out that while we were listening one morning Cheri discovered one of her neighbors had died. Her landlord had rushed to the man's home to help prepare the traditional steps in a proper wake. (I won't get into them here, but if you have an interest, surfing the net could bring you up to speed. And it is fascinating.)

One ritual to be particularly aware of? "Never speak ill of the dead" at a wake.

It is perfectly clear the Irish take the key rights of passage very seriously, particularly in rural areas. It actually first came to my attention when I was in college. Someone in my family passed on a report from my Irish grandmother that my Dad had been born under the 'Caul'. The Caul is the amniotic birth sac. It happens only once in every 85 thousand births.

From the middle ages comes the belief those born under the Caul will be 'special'.

Depending on what part of Europe you were in, 'special' could be GOOD or BAD. Lucky for me in Ireland it is a good thing. Under the Caul Irish babies are supposed to be full of ESP. No snap judgement here, but my Dad ALWAYS knew what I was up to. It was EERIE, another pun intended.

We quite often talk about those naughty little Fairies called Leprechauns? But in rural Ireland talk is just of Fairies. Irish folklore says an ancient race of angels came down to earth, some of them living just below Ringforts, or Raths you'll see all over Ireland.

Now this is word of mouth, as is much of what you'll learn in Ireland, but I'm told today almost no farmer will tear down or farm the land beneath a rath. It would be very bad luck to invoke the ire of the fairies.

Sometimes found near a sacred fairy fort, you'll find a 'Prayer Well' where both pagan and Christians worshiped. They are not typically found on tourist maps because they tend to be on private farm land, preserved and undisturbed. But you'll quite often find brand new prayer beads and crosses lying near the well.

Also out on some of these wide expanses you'll find small cemeteries with most of the headstone messages carved in Irish. So if you visit one, bring your translator with you.

There seems to be an indestructible respect for Irish ancestry. That's why you'll find these stone castles still erect. And they are one of the best ways to trace your roots. Most Irish names are connected back to these castles.

The castle below, Ross Castle, was once owned and ruled by the O'Donahues. That was my grandmother's maiden name. While the O'Donahues were eventually booted out, descendants of the O'Donahues still hang out here in County Kerry.

So if you're a Kelley, a Gleason, a Murphy, an O'shea, a Boyles, or a Dwyer you can most likely connect yourself to a castle or a county.

(For instance my old buddy Dan Dwyer might look for his roots in the parish of Makarky, in the County of Tipperary.)

My observation is that Irish people, outside of Dublin, still tend to spend their lifespans right where their great, great,great, great grandparents hung out. Not necessarily a fact, just an observation.

No doubt you've heard Catholics rule the Republic of Ireland. And you sure get that impression when in every town and city the tallest structure in town is a Catholic Cathedral. The one below is St. Mary's Cathedral in Killarney. And you might be tempted to think all this sense of spirit and tradition comes from Catholic doctrine. But that is not my impression.

It has certainly had it's influence. For instance it is only just recently that divorce was legalized in Ireland. But from what I've seen, heard and read the church has very little impact on the governance of Ireland these days. And while a typical conversation ends with "God's speed?" I think it also true that very few of the lively attachment's to spirits and tradition can be traced to the church.

What I see is a truly spiritual respect for ancestry and lore that predates Christianity and many other religions. When you are there on a typical February day, visibility dimmed by clouds and mist, you just SEE THINGS that may or may not really be there.

But then why take a chance? Eh?

BREAKING NEWS:
Major Crime comitted in Ireland today. Someone made off with 270 thousand euros (about 300 thousand dollars) worth of Finnegan's Irish Whiskey from its distillery. Party for the winners of tommorrow's election, maybe?