I spent last Tuesday at work in the rarefied environs of the Supreme Court in London. Just for contrast, I spent the next day knocking down a wall with a sledgehammer. I was working at a rapid pace, as I had to have the rubble cleared in time to pick the kids up from school.…
A close friend of mine loves to give me advice about my personal life. She is very keen on telling me what to do and I am fed up. How should I deal with this? The first thing you have to consider is what is your friend’s intention. Is she genuinely looking out for you…
Bedrooms are full of objects that make the room your own; from books, ornaments, posters, unique lamps and more. Make your mark on your personal space stronger with hand-made monogram letters. Collect some items you’ll use for decorating the letter. Use beads, buttons, sequins, ribbon, yarn and anything you can get your hands on. For…
The concept of successful or optimal ageing has become part of the lexicon of modern day geriatrics and encompasses maintaining in as far as is possible our cognitive, physical and mental health as we grow older. Despite this, cognitive function which is crucial to healthy ageing declines significantly in many older adults. Indeed, few conditions…
I think the dog is putting a challenge up to me. I’ve written about Roise before, how she joins in with us when we pray the Angelus. As we respond to the prayers, Roise makes a strange, sing-song baying sound. She’s a pack animal and we are her pack so she wants to join with…
Sr Colette Kane OP I am a religious sister living and working in An Tairseach, the Dominican Farm and Ecology Centre in Wicklow town. The spirituality of this community and place is given expression and witnessed to through the lens of creation theology, where planet earth is understood as the primary revelation of the Divine.…
Nicole O’Leary Nicole O’Leary describes how students in Portlaoise benefit from the John Paul II Awards As part of being a CEIST school, 5th and 6th year students from Scoil Chríost Rí, Portlaoise, participate in the John Paul II awards annually. Girls in our school from all walks of faith come together to rejoice and…
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and it’s not just an occasion for sending cards ‘sealed with a loving kiss’. It’s just another opportunity to get your finger out and make some seasonal crafts. Because heart prints and heart designs are so popular, you can make almost any Valentine craft at any time of…
When I was a child, both my parents were in the Pioneer Total Abstinence Association. Thirty or 40 years ago, almost everyone in Ireland knew about the Pioneers and a fair few were members. I’d guess that if you mentioned the Association to a group of young people today, there’d be a few blank expressions.…
I recently overheard a woman saying she withdew her child from the school choir, in a church school, on the basis that there were “too many churchey songs”. Yet there was no animosity in this slightly eccentric criticism, it was simply that her child preferred musicals. Here in England, faith is a personal matter – to…
Wendy Grace
Erin Fox
Dr Kevin McCarroll
Bairbre Cahill
Maria Byrne