Skip to main content

Land of Lore


In Dublin, Ireland at the Champions Challenge, an International field hockey tournament. Here's my take on Ireland, the Land of Lore.



There are some places I really like. Ireland is one of them.

Not sure why. Maybe it’s that quirky Eye-ish twang – “I-dink-day-cullit Ingish” or those abundant rolling hills of lush green. Heck, maybe, it’s just the Guinness - I love an impeccably smooth pint.

Whatever it is, it enchants me. There’s something special about the people here. The Irish are made of durable character, modest in their work and tireless in their effort. They are refreshingly practical in their perspective - humorously stoic yet deviously witty.

Aside from the red hair, freckles, and fair complexion, most of the Irish are equipped with three things - a good sense of humor, a solid imagination, and a strong liver. It's Darwinism at its finest - these genetic traits are survival necessities - the daily weather is absolutely abysmal. Cold, dreary, rainy.


Yet there is something cynically magical about the weather. I swear it's trying to hide some great, mystical truth. A truth born in Celtic times, yet hidden from modern sight. Because, when the clouds part, and sun shines, the gods give us a glimpse of that long forgotten truth.

Huge, majestic, vibrant bands of light stretch across the sky. Rainbows.

And, somewhere beyond the rainbows, I swear lives the mystical land of Irish lore – a secret thoroughfare of fantasy - a world of leprechauns, gold, fairy trees, giants, and magic. It’s a world I long for...a world I am going to find...and if I can't find it, I'll do what any great "imaginator" does, I'll pretend...

And when I'm done pretending, I'll do what every great explorer does, I'll chronicle the adventure.



Comments

  1. AnonymousOctober 10, 2012 at 1:12 PM

    Hi Rachel,

    Very nice post about Ireland. I studied at University College Cork for a semester and have very fond memories. I'm writing because I'm working on a campaign promoting your hometown of Camden, NJ, which desperately needs some positive press. If you would be interested in sharing a few of your positive memories of Camden, I would like to discuss them. Feel free to email me at jeffiorio710@gmail.com.
    Sorry for the informal outreach—I wasn't up for the red tape of going through Team USA.
    Many thanks—enjoy Ireland!

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousNovember 1, 2012 at 7:51 PM

    Hello!!
    You are my role model and I always look to you for inspiration! My high school team is playing in the state semi game tomorrow. any words of advice?
    Haley Yeager
    Ohio

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

America's Got Talent, Not Time

Let's take a dive into the talent pool.   America’s got talent. A lot of talent. What it doesn’t have though is time and a cohesive system to identify and develop that talent to maturity. The short timeline for the development of talent undermines the country's ability to succeed at the highest level. A multitude of factors play a role, yet the most influential is the win now mentality driven by the demands of college and youth sport. This mentality  - and the money behind it - dominates the American sport landscape; it leads to early selection and deselection, myopic views of talent, and the narrowing of the playing pool before most athletes have time to emerge and fully develop. Recruiting accelerates the timeline. We expect more from athletes at an earlier age. We evaluate them at an earlier age. We select and deselect them at an earlier age. The consequence is that an abundance of talent drops out of the pathway, or goes unidentified and undeveloped. A number of factor...
2 comments
Read more

Back on Track

Apologies dear readers, if any of you happen to exist. I  seem to have strayed terribly far from my original purpose, which  I assume, by virtue of the blog title, had something to do with the Athlete Experience.  I have led you on a meandering path toward a cliff of randomness. And I have asked you to jump from that cliff into the oblivion of utter meaninglessness. I have failed wholeheartedly to keep you properly adrift of the athletic experience that matters to me, the way that has become my means - my mode of exploration, my celebration of humanity, and my form of art. And that is the way of the Red, White, and Blue. The Stars and Stripes. The United States of America. With a field hockey stick, a ball, and my teammates. I serve the greatest country in the world. So here is my attempt to rectify my failure, reclaim your readership and get back on track.  Now seems like the best place for the beginning of that quest. The time reads 6:28 AM IST, Irish Stand...
5 comments
Read more

A Madly Beautiful Place

Today. What a magical word. The Games have officially arrived. Sorry I haven’t written. The past few days have been a whirlwind. So much has happened since we left – and more since we’ve arrived. A trip to Cotswold on the English country side. Some peace and calm. A scrimmage versus Holland. So many people, places, things, and my favorite of all - practices on the blue “smurf” turf. Such simple encounters have already become amazing memories. Pinch. Is this real life? Yes. Katelyn Falgowski, myself, Lauren Crandall in Cotswold The Village.  Pop. Pop. Smack. Swishhhh. Haaaahhh. Haaahh. Pop. Smack. The strange noises drew me toward the open patio door. I looked out to see a clash of strong Italian bodies in the courtyard. More a tango of men clad in gloves and head gear performing some violent dance than a boxing practice – our mouths stood agape. We were in awe. Amy Tran, who say beside me, said, “I don’t know what is more funny – ...
3 comments
Read more