Holiday Season

Summer arrived in Northern Ireland last week causing many white legs to come out of hiding for the first time this year. As a friend often says of our beautiful home in Castlewellan – ‘God was showing off when he made this place’. The schools have just finished for the long summer holiday and ice-cream vans cruise the housing estates hunting for victims. In the cold waters of Dundrum Bay jelly-fish lie in wait for the same white legs and the even whiter torsos of brave seasonal bathers. With sunshine of the Mournes as a backdrop it’s a perfect summer scene. Generations of schoolchildren have looked forward to the long holidays and light evenings. In early July the festive bunting announces ‘the marching season’. For some this marks a celebration of a glorious past. For others it’s a provocative gesture of domination and defiance. Despite the outstanding beauty of this place the old maxim reminds us ‘Every silver lining has a dark cloud’. Yet perhaps we can look at this situation in a more useful, and dare I say it, ‘Green’ way? Never before has it been more important to awaken to the mortal dangers that threaten our planet. We need to both appreciate our heritage and to protect it. This is the time to declare ‘No Surrender’ to the corporatist forces of greed that exploit the world’s resources and destroy the habitats of all sentient beings. It is often when we are on holiday that we can gain the necessary perspective to make major changes in our lives. Let us use this holiday period to call to mind what’s really important; what unites rather than divides us. May we now engage in the corrective activities that will protect our environment and allow future generations to bring white legs safely out of hiding.