The Blarney Stone was wet.
Which maybe makes sense when you’re kissing something — but on a 75-degree day in Ireland, I wasn’t expecting moisture to meet my lips. The whole experience was a lot less romantic than I expected. To get there, I climbed enough winding stairs and corridors of the Blarney Castle to fully activate my fear of heights (but one does not simply go all the way to Cork just to leave without the gift of gab). Then, stand in line, only to lie down very fast while an attendant held my legs and I hoisted myself up to plant one on the Blarney Stone. (Wet, because they were sanitizing between smackers.)
At the end of this whirlwind liaison, kissers can buy a photo of themselves laying it on the stone. A sort of Disney-fication of Irish lore, if you will.
As a (partial) Irish American, I spent a lot of time researching and identifying with the culture. DNA results have given me ancestral percentages and potential family names. Two trips to the Emerald Isle felt like visiting a second home. I wept while touring EPIC, The Irish Emigration Museum, in Dublin, proud to be part of such a poetic, creative heritage. And I’ve worn a Claddagh ring most of my life.
This issue’s theme, “Irish heart,” is a nod to the Claddagh design: two hands, holding a crowned heart to symbolize love (heart), friendship (hands) and loyalty (crown). Rochester has a fair bit of Irish history, which you’ll read more about in the following pages, and our team had a bloody good time putting this together.
Given the current state of the world, I don’t think this issue could be more well-timed. Now, more than ever, we need what the Irish do best: craic, poetry, music, whimsy, comfort, hospitality and hard work. (Also, potatoes.)
And when things feel especially heavy, let us recall the words of the old Irish proverb: “A good laugh and a long sleep are the two best cures for anything.”
Erin go bragh.
L
Irish stuff you should know:
- St. Patrick was British. At roughly 16, he was captured by Irish pirates and sold into slavery in Ireland. He escaped six years later, returned to Great Britain to become a cleric and went back to Ireland to spread Christianity.
- The abbreviation is St. Paddy’s, not St. Patty’s.
- A three-leaf clover, also known as a shamrock, was used by St. Patrick to teach the Holy Trinity — father, son, and holy spirit — to the Irish.
- A four-leaf clover is simply that (not a shamrock), and symbolizes luck.
- If it’s Irish, it’s whiskey (not whisky).
This article appears in Dec 1-31, 2024.
