A parent’s perspective There’s something I like about November, tucked in between the beauty and colour of October and the hustle and bustle of December. November reminds me of the inevitability of death as the last few withered leaves lose their fragile hold on the branches, clinging on for one last flash of glory.…
A Parent’s Perspective My daughter is studying history for the Leaving Certificate and was quizzing me recently about the differences between communism and socialism. I was just about to settle down to watch a film so I took the easy option of playing a few YouTube videos and referring to George Orwell’s Animal Farm…
A Parent’s Perspective When I was a child, it was a regular week-end job to lay down newspaper, take out the box of polishes, cloths and brushes and set to work on the family’s various boots and shoes. It was usually a job for two and my brother or sister and I would take a…
A Parent’s Perspective We’ve all been enjoying the recent, uncharacteristically hot, weather. It’s not the typical Irish summer when you can breakfast in the garden, head to the beach several days in a row and, instead of a rainy few weeks in Ballybunion or Bundoran, it’s been more like the Costa Brava. The glorious…
A Parent’s Perspective There has been much soul searching in Ireland in the last few weeks. What could have gone so wrong that produced such a devastating result in the referendum on the Eighth Amendment, the one that protected the equal right to life of the unborn? How could Catholics attend Mass, hear the…
A Parent’s Perspective In 1534, during a dialogue with his daughter on the subject of conscience, St Thomas More said: “I never intend, God being my good Lord, to pin my soul to another man’s back, not even the best man that I know this day living: for I know not where he may…
A Parent’s Perspective “What’s abortion, Mammy?” is one question that many parents have been hearing over the past few weeks. With a referendum on abortion approaching rapidly, the arguments and passion around the subject are going to reach fever pitch leaving concerned adults struggling with how they should deal with it. Children are inevitably…
A Parent’s Perspective Easter is such a lovely time of year. With the darker evenings behind us and the daffodils heralding the new growth, there’s a great feeling of hope and joy. For many families, the lead up to Easter is a bit similar to the pre-Christmas period with concerns about catering for family…
The first months of any new year often seem to drag a bit. It’s not the most exciting time of year with the country still in the grip of cold weather, the Christmas bills being paid off and summer tantalisingly out of our grasp. I miss that post-December calm now. My husband and I were…
A Parent’s Perspective In the coming weeks and months we’ll be hearing a lot about the Eighth Amendment and the right to life of our smallest human beings. It’ll be a tough time for anyone who puts themselves out there to speak on all the issues involved. I’m a bit of a social media…