Aha! It’s that time again. Time to bring out the little people. We change our mantel display to reflect the upcoming holiday, and my husband loves to display our Finnians. These little guys have a piece of the Blarney Stone with them and we need all the luck we can get.
Speaking of “Blarney“…I respect the idea that kissing the stone can bring good luck, but after doing a bit of research, it appears it was only meant to give you eloquent speech. I am still not certain why people must be upside down…and why anyone would want to kiss the same spot that over 300,000 people kiss a year. However, if it works for you, great. The “Stone of Eloquence” does not appear to offer just plain good luck, but there are some people who could certainly benefit from kissing it I’m sure.
Moving on from articulation issues, there is also a book I read every year called Jamie O’Rourke and the Big Potato by Tomie DePaola. Now, I don’t know how you read books, but you haven’t heard a story read like this one until you have heard me read it. Seriously. I love reading to my kids and I read this particular story with an Irish accent (as best as I can) and I have done that for years. Okay, well the truth is, I read every story in a certain “voice”. I use voices for characters as well as a “narrator” voice. I believe in tone, expression, and the pure delivery of a story. A good story-teller can weave a story just by watching the audience and using words to paint a picture. So the next time you are reading out loud, please don’t forget to use the voices you hear in your head. Ha.
May your blessings outnumber
The shamrocks that grow,
And may trouble avoid you
Wherever you go.
~Irish Blessing
