The Irish Melody you hear is Toora Loora Loora...
an Irish lullaby...sung to my girls many times...*S*

By request...
Toora LooraLoora Lyrics

I am a Mississippian thrice removed from the great country of Ireland....My first ancestors crossed the ocean with 
their heavy sea trunks with nothing but hope in their hearts and America in their eyes. My allegiance to this country stills stands proud to this day.

Tricolor of Ireland

Green represents the Catholic, Gaelic and Anglo-Norman communities
Orange represents the Farmers of northern Protestants . The white in the center signifies a hope of peace and trust between the two.


The Luck 'O the Irish


I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work,the more I have of it. 
~Thomas Jefferson, American President (b. 1743) 

Luck is not chance~
It's Toil~
Fortune's expensive smile 
Is earned~
~Emily Dickinson

I think we consider too much the good luck of the early bird, and not enough the bad luck of the early worm.
~ROOSEVELT, FRANKLIN DELANO (1882-1945, United States President, 1933-1945) 

Sometimes I lie awake at night and I ask, "Why me?," then a voice answers, "Nothing personal, your name just happened to come up."
     ~Charlie Brown, in Peanuts

Perhaps a few precautions wouldn't hurt~~

The Shamrock

According to legend, St. Patrick used the
shamrock in Ireland to explain the Trinity, a basic principle of the Catholic faith.

Before the Christian Era in Ireland, the Shamrock
was a sacred plant of the Druids of Ireland because
its leaves formed a triad. The three was a mystical
number in the Celtic religion. When Ireland was the
land of the Druids, the Bishop Patrick came to teach
the word of God throughout the country.

A group of his followers came to him and
admitted it was difficult for them to believe in the
Holy Trinity. Saint Patrick thought for a moment.
He stooped down and plucked a leaf from the
Shamrock growing at this feet. He held it before
them and said, "Behold the living example of
the Three-in-One."

A four leaflet is a rare occurrence!

One leaf is for HOPE
The second for FAITH
The third for LOVE
The fourth for LUCK

Clover facts:
Trifolium repens  L.

The plant that produces our four leaf clovers has been identified by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture as Trifolium repens  L., White Clover

"The clovers also occupied a position in the cultural life of early peoples. White clover (T. repens  L.) in particular was held in high esteem by the early Celts of Wales as a charm against evil spirits." 
Clover Science and Technology". N.L. Taylor, 1985.

Please...pluck this clover for your own page!!
With Sweetmamapam's Compliments!!

 


 
 
The Little People!!
Irish Fairies

I am certainly no expert on the subject of the little people...but I find their very existence intriguing and something that I dearly 
love about Irish folklore.

The name Leprechaun is derived from the old Irish
word luacharma'n which means "little body" or "pygmy".


 

Leprechauns are always poteen (an Irish home-brew) "intoxicated". These aged and tiny men are never so drunk that they can not hold their hammer steady.

These little self-appointed guardians of the ancient Danish treasures keep their hord buried in crocks .  They tend to avoid the greedy 'humans' and if caught (which is a rarity) will try to weasel their way out of the situation by offering a golden coin  carried in one of two pouches.  Better keep an eye on the elusive Leprechaun, for he will disappear in an instant!!

Near a misty stream in Ireland in the hollow of a tree
Live mystical, magical leprechauns who are clever as can be
With their pointed ears, and turned up toes 
and little coats of green
The leprechauns busily make their shoes 
and try hard not to be seen.
Only those who really believe have seen these little elves
And if we are all believers We can surely see for ourselves.

Of special interest to me were the other Irish Fairies associated with Ireland and her folklore. See if you are familiar with 
these 'little people'...


 

The Dullahan

A headless horseman who terrorizes the night with a whip made of a human spine.  This gruesome fairy has a supernatural  power...the ability to 'see' a dying person no matter where he lies.

Those who have seen him have been struck blind in the eye or has had blood thrown in the face.  Beware this fairy he is truly on a rampage o'er the Irish landscape!!

Pooka

A 'Nature spirit'  that ravages the Irish countryside at night. This fairy tears down gates and fences, terrorizes livestock, and destroys crops on rural farms.

Site of the 'Pooka' can cause hens to stop laying eggs and travelers to ride in fear of attacks to their person.

The Pooka can be placated or 'bargained with' a 'share of the crop'...(known as Pooka's Share). Beware...this shape changer can be anything he desires to be and is to be greatly feared.

Changelings

Fairies that birth deformed or maimed children will steal a healthy mortal baby and leave a 'changeling' in place of the human child.  These changelings are disagreeable babies and cause havoc and misfortune within the household. They drain the family of all luck and eventually cause deterioration of the family structure.

Grogochs

A fury, half human/fairy, the grogoch is a sturdy little fairy with the desire to attach himself to a family and help with planting and chores around the house.  He is almost always a nuisance and is underfoot constantly. After a while most families seek to rid their homes of Grogochs by a minister or clergyman.

Banshee

A female ancestral fairy that will forewarn certain Irish clans of the deaths of their loved ones. She appears in a grave robe or winding sheet.  She may also appear as a washing woman...washing the blood stained clothes of those that are about to die. Her warning wail is a keening that will shatter glass.

Merrows

Comes from an Irish word meaning "sea"...and it addresses the female of the species. The male species' "Mermen' are rarely seen.

Her feet are flat and her hands are webbed.  They are messengers of doom and death. She wear special clothing to enable her to swim in the sea.  To come ashore she will abandon these clothes and become a beautiful, desirable creature...luring men to marry her...but beware...her urge to return to the sea is strong and she will wrap herself once again in her sea garments and return...leaving husband and children behind.
 
 

Sla'nte!!
Irish Gaelic for Good health or Cheers!!

Keep your glasses Full!!


 

In Ireland, a day without beer
Is a day without sunshine;D

There are quite a few Irishmen
who are occasional drinkers --
They claim that any occasion
will do quite nicely.

A Toast

Here's to you and yours and to mine and ours
and if mine and ours ever come across you and yours
I hope you and yours will do as much for mine 
and ours as mine and ours have done for you and yours. 

May you be in Heaven
a half hour before
the Devil knows you're dead.
 

Have a wonderful St. Paddy's Day!!
Sweetmamapam;D

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Created February 1999
Updated February 2001
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