An ageing population has led to a significant increase in the number requiring nursing home care in Ireland in recent years. While the vast majority of adults aged over 65 continue to live at home, about 5% have care needs that require placement in long-term care rising to about 20% in those aged over 80…
I am a happy mammy. For three weekends in a row my whole brood is at home. It is unusual enough to get our older two girls home together but because of a few family events and now Easter we are having a great run of family time. I love the banter and craic, sitting…
Hannah Evans “At all levels, a change of mind-set is needed. It is the same mind-set that is needed to tackle both climate change and world poverty.”(Laudato Si’ 175) The words of Pope Francis were gratefully received in 2015 when he released his ground-breaking papal encyclical Laudato Si’. Since Trócaire began the number of natural…
Jim Bird The social aspect of the Pioneers has had a positive effect on my life, writes Jim Bird I hail from the small rural area of Boardsmill in Co. Meath. I’m 24 and currently studying history and geography in Maynooth University in the hope of entering the teaching profession. My parents are teetotallers all…
Green Fingers April is full of those perfect early spring days when the sun is shining, the air is clear and you just want to get out into the garden and enjoy it. Clip over winter-flowering heather with shears now that they have finished flowering. This will dead head and tidy them up in one…
Children’s Corner’s Holy Week starts this weekend with Palm Sunday and there’s lots to learn and do to celebrate the week. You might have your own traditions each year on Holy Week such as attending your local Passion play before or after the Stations of the Cross, or staying up late on Saturday to attend…
Protecting children from modern fears Whenever visiting London, I like to walk across Westminster Bridge on the way from Waterloo station. The vista of Westminster palace and the Thames stretching towards Tower Bridge is a sight to behold. I had been there just a few weeks before the recent terror attacks, with the children in tow,…
A Parent’s Perspective According to The Good Retreat Guide, a retreat is a journey that can be religious or spiritual in nature, and is typically taken away from the confines of everyday living. Its purpose is to get closer to God and to rediscover one’s faith. Some adults will go on a retreat every few…
Mags Gargan visits the Sanctuary meditation and mindfulness centre, to learn about a programme helping struggling teens to find peace “I’m bored.” Two words any parent dreads, whether your offspring is a young child or a teenager. However, according to Caitriona McColgan, young people need to sit in their own boredom for the world to…
Lent is flying by and Easter is getting closer and closer. Next weekend is Palm Sunday, the last Sunday of Lent. Throughout Lent, Easter Sunday is the main day we look forward to, but Palm Sunday is just as exciting as it marks the start of Holy Week. Palm Sunday commemorates Christ’s entry into Jerusalem…
Dr Kevin McCarroll
Bairbre Cahill
Paul Gargan
Mags Gargan
Maria Byrne
Erin Fox