The Events of Sunday, May 8, 2011

                My watch alarm sounded at 6 am. I got dressed and sang to the sleeping kids, “Good morning, we’re going to Ireland today!” Our ferry boat departed at 10:00, so we had to arrive by 9:00, which meant leaving by 7:30. But that was no problem for us, even after our late night at the banquet. It was a bittersweet transition for me, because I genuinely enjoyed Wales. Many of their passions are also mine: singing in choirs, watching football, and walking in the country. But there are more fascinating cultures awaiting us in the weeks to come.

                As we drove to the ferry dock in Holyhead, we saw rainbows spanning the roadway ahead of us. We wondered if we were nearing the land of leprechauns and pots of gold. Being Sunday, we also tried to replicate some of the elements of a church service. First, to lead us in some singing, we heard some Natalie Grant worship songs that Abby had chosen from her iPod. Then we listened to a podcast of a sermon on “The Big Idea” by Pastor Dave Flaig (our home church pastor). He challenged us to think less of our own “big ideas” and attune our lives to God’s Big Idea. That is, instead of pursuing our own agenda, instead of striving for our own goals, instead of putting our own interests first, we, as Christians, need to humble ourselves and put first God’s agenda, goals, and interests. After this healthy spiritual challenge, we were ready for our time of family devotions and prayer, which we did with the car parked in the line for the ferry.

                Excitement mounted when we saw that there was free WiFi, both in the terminal and on the ferry itself. Ben and Caitlin collaborated to get our laptop connected to the Internet. Caitlin and Lindsey both had the idea of buying Pam a hot chocolate for Mother’s Day, so I supplied them with the coins for their secret mission.

                To cross the Irish Sea, we boarded the “Stena Explorer”. It is a mammoth ship, more than 400 feet in length, with a capacity of 375 cars and 1500 passengers. We found seats with tables near the middle (to minimize the rocking sensation) and made ourselves comfortable. The ocean surface looked smooth, with swells no more than six feet. Even so, about halfway through our two-hour journey, both Pam and I had to stop reading. Being seasick is no fun, so we both closed our eyes and relaxed.

                We landed in Dun Laoghaire at noon, right on schedule. As we drove the van off the ferry, a bright sign greeted us in three languages: “Welcome – Fáilte – Croeso” (English – Irish/Gaelic – Welsh). We were not yet hungry for lunch, so we drove toward our lodging here in Ireland. The problem is, we never got an exact address for our lodging, and our GPS units did not recognize the information we had. So, we chose a town just past our lodging and headed that way. Not the quickest route, but we ended up traveling some beautiful territory. We climbed rugged hills, looked down into a slate blue lake (Lough Tay), and drove over Sally Gap (I love that name). On and on we drove, for about an hour. We remarked to one another that these hills were not rich green (like we had seen in the Cotswolds and in Wales) but reddish-brown, from the low bushes that covered the grass.

                Then, suddenly, we saw the sign: “Kippure Estates”. We found the Registration Office and got directions to our new home: Unit 19. The name “Estates” makes it sound more luxurious than it is; “Condominiums” would be closer to reality. Nevertheless, the interiors are spacious. Our unit has three bedrooms, three showers, and four toilets. That’s luxury enough for us!

                We carried in our luggage, set out our food, and enjoyed a good lunch. After clean-up, we finished the moving-in process: luggage goes to the bedrooms, food supplies find homes in the kitchen cabinets and refrigerator, shower supplies go to the bathrooms, etc.

                The rest of the afternoon, we rested. That means different things to different family members. Pam celebrated Mother’s Day by taking a long-overdue Sunday afternoon nap on the sofa. The kids spent time reading, listening to music, blogging, and planning their upcoming tours (Caitlin planned London, Ben planned Prague). I read for a bit and took a walk along nearby River Liffey. At about 5:00 pm, Lindsey gave Ben and me haircuts, after which the three of us could go to our three separate showers!

                Meanwhile, Pam and Abby improvised a yummy dinner of vegetable soup and cheesy pasta with vegetables and salami. After dinner and clean-up, Abby gave us some lessons on the Gaelic/Irish language. She also hoped we might watch some Gaelic football on TV. However, we could get no TV signal from the satellite dish. All we could find was a CD of Bollywood-style Indian music, to which Abby improvised a goofy dance. The rest of the evening, we enjoyed more reading, blogging, and a word-building game called “Banana Grams”.