By Edythe Preet In the 16th century Elizabeth I was Queen of England. Spain and England were at war, and their armadas stalked each other on the open seas. Certain Irish sailing captains who swore allegiance to neither nation raided both fleets for profit. Some called them pirates. Some called them heroes. One became a legend. Her name was Granuaile. Grace O'Malley. Pirate … [Read more...] about Sláinte! Bid Thy Guests Welcome Though They Come At Any Hour
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Queen of the Klondike
By Gary Blackwood After the discovery of gold in the Klondike, 100 years ago, some 100,000 people headed north in search of a quick fortune. Only a handful of them found it, and of that handful, only one was a woman. When Belinda Mulrooney died nearly penniless in a nursing home near Seattle in 1970, few of her neighbors suspected that, seventy years earlier, she was known … [Read more...] about Queen of the Klondike
Something I Did Not Know I Was Missing
I went to Ireland with my two children in March/April of 2018. This was the first time that I had ever been. I always had the impression that Ireland was similar to the U.K. The trip completely dispelled that myth. I thought Ireland and the Irish people were beautiful and I came away with the belief that Ireland and the U.K. were as different as France and the U.K. Needless … [Read more...] about Something I Did Not Know I Was Missing
The Pull Of The Stars
By Tom Deignan Best-Selling Dublin-born author Emma Donoghue has a brilliant and timely new novel out. Set in an Irish maternity ward during the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918, The Pull of the Stars explores the challenges and heroism of nurses and other health care workers, while at the same time tenderly chronicling the loves and losses of their inner lives. Tom Deignan … [Read more...] about The Pull Of The Stars
John Lewis (1940-2020) R. I. P.
A Personal Reflection by Christine Kinealy In 2014, I had the honour to be part of a “pilgrimage” to Ireland organized by the Faith and Politics Institute in Washington, D.C.. Congressman John Lewis was part of the pilgrimage, as were Governor Martin O’Malley of Maryland and Senator Mazie Hirono of Hawaii. Congressman Lewis, a veteran of the American Civil Rights Movement, … [Read more...] about John Lewis (1940-2020) R. I. P.