Today has been one of those sensual Sundays when you feel that nature is striving to shock, soothe and soul-search all at the same time.
I guess we needed a day like this here in Ireland with all the upheaval going on in the background as the General Election count goes on and on and political uncertainty hangs in the air.
I had lambs on my mind as I drove towards the Copper Coast searching the fields for new arrivals. The sky looked uncertain as I left Tramore and soon a snowy vista opened up in front of me as the Comeragh Mountains, which look down on the sea, were well powdered:
Snowy Comeragh Mountains, Co. Waterford
The sea itself was basking under blue, blue skies and the tall cliffs at Benvoy Beach were in deep reflection:
Reflection on the Copper Coast, Co. Waterford
Near Bonmahon, I found the peaceful bleating and gentleness that I had been craving. It swept me out of time and into a warm, woolly world of whispering and playfulness.
I’ve spent most of today listening to the General Election Results unfolding on the Irish airwaves and have been going through a whole gamut of emotions.
Counting is still going on and it will be at least tomorrow night, if not Monday or Tuesday before we know the full result.
However, it is clear, at this stage, that we have ditched the existing Government. There is a definite sense of burning bridges about this. I took a breather from listening when I got to the burning bridges feeling and went down and sat in front of the fire. The flames looked fierce but beautiful:
Burning Bright
It’s surprising how much an image can change one’s view of situations and this one certainly changed mine. Yes, there may be the darkness of uncertainty but there is the beauty of new possibilities.
We are entering the unknown in political terms in Ireland but there are many options available, even if none of them seems particularly perfect right now.
The whole scenario made me think of a jogger I encountered out on the Coastal Path in Dunmore East recently. He was racing along on a muddy path, taking corners at high speed.
Rounding the Next Bend
No he didn’t run over the cliff; he rounded the bend with a bit of a skid and bounded happily onwards.
Our politicians have to trust the path and their balance at this point and move ahead with the country’s interests close to their hearts.
I’m glad to say that I, for one, have faith in them as a collective. I think that each and every one of them cares about the country even if they have different policies that they want to pursue.
Yes, it’s exciting times and I must say I’m glad that this is Ireland I’m in and not a place where there’s terrible unrest or a busy billionaire sweeping up votes like it they were confetti.
Today was General Election day here in Ireland and as I went to vote this morning, it brought back all those days of going to the polls ~ first as a hanger on with my parents and then as a voter in my own right.
I’m passionate about taking the trouble, not that I’d call it ‘trouble,’ to vote as it isn’t so long ago that many, many people were disenfranchised in countries, such as Ireland, and women have a lot to thank Suffragettes, like Emmeline Pankhurst for:
This was a message that was well instilled into me by my mother who was born in 1921, just a year before full women’s suffrage was introduced in Ireland.
I must say that I’m not a person who votes for women just because they are women. It’s what a candidate stands for that matters to me and all things being equal on that score, I’ll vote for the woman as I feel that we need a much greater representation from women in politics and in all areas of key decision-making.
As I conclude this post, there are just a couple of minute to go before the polling booths close for this 2016 General Election. The pattern of the results will begin to emerge soon after counting starts at 9am tomorrow morning.
I once had the privilege of being one of the counters at a General Election in a Dublin Constituency in the early 1980s. That experience taught me a huge amount about about our complex Proportional Representation System which is very far removed from the First Past the Post System.
The tension at the Count was incredible and the scrutiny under which we were counting was beyond intense. It was a long, long day but one I will never forget.
Funny, the quote that has been bobbing around in my head all day today for some reason is this one that really resonates with me:
In memory, everything seems to happen to music. ( Tennesse Williams)
The music that is with me from this Election period has to be this song which has been belting out in the car as Harry and I have been driving past election poster after election poster ~ colourful cardboard flowers that will have vanished over the weekend!
Election fever is running high in both America and Ireland at present and it’s impossible not to be struck by the extraordinary contrast between Donald Trump who is hogging the limelight here with his outlandish comments and Grace O’Sullivan who is guaranteed my No. 1 Vote in the Irish General Election this Friday.
Grace O’Sullivan Poster on the Copper Coast, Co. Waterford.
Grace O’Sullivan, who is standing for the Green Party, is a soft-spoken woman with deep, deep concern for vulnerable people in our society and for the natural environment of this precious world of ours.
She has courage, and I mean real courage, as well as clear vision and a wealth of honesty, sincerity and life experience.
Grace shares my absolute love of our native Tramore and is a person whom feel l intensely privileged to have known for many years.
Tramore, Co. Waterford, Ireland, Europe and the World will be given a very significant helping hand if Grace O’Sullivan’s voice is heard from our Irish Parliament.
Ireland’s General Election may not be hogging World News this week like Donald Trump, but I know that when I cast my vote for Grace O’Sullivan on Friday that I am voting for a candidate whose heart is in the right place and who will dedicate herself to building bridges to a better future for those who need it most.
Ireland is in a whirl of activity at the moment as we prepare for a host of high key national events over the next couple of months:
The General Election ~ February 26th
St. Patrick’s Day ~ March 17th
Centenary of The Easter Rising 1916 ~ March 27th especially
Census of Population ~ April 24th
The fact that there is so much going on all around the same time has the effect of diluting each specific event under what feels like huge blanket of Irishness of various shades and emphases.
And, all the while, each person living in Ireland has his/her own personal events going on.
It’s hard to take it all in at times and while I am intensely interested in things social and political, one has to step back from it all from time to time and draw breath.
My everyday Ireland of this week has been bursting with beauty. Here’s a little glimpse of how it’s been here in Co. Waterford:
SOCIAL BRIDGE ~ Jean Tubridy connecting with you from Ireland 