Author: Patrick Muldoon

A recent cycle was the stimulus I needed to reflect on the past year. The beauty of the long deserted greenway at eventide with its historic railway track alongside and through the pretty stone arched bridge shone the shadows of light.

Recently I change jobs and it offered me the chance to begin again, to explore a new place and to see my life in a new perspective. My mental discipline, acquired through prayer and exercise, has reduced my rumination about past or present concerns and is helping me see how the Holy Spirit is coming to my aid.

I have never ceased to dream of more adventures in my life in the future. Pope Francis has said that “Dreams are important. They keep our view broad; they help us to embrace the horizon, to cultivate hope in every daily action.” While I realise my young adult life is firmly in the rear mirror now and that middle age will soon be approaching; I have faith and trust in God, confidence in my own abilities and the hope that there will be many more adventures to come.

Bhí grá mhór agam don Gaeilge ó raibh mé i mo dhéagóir. Mhothaigh mé tairbhe mo eispéireais i Gaeltacht gConamara ar an toirt. Thug sé an-sásamh dom a bheith ag obair sa Gaeilge agus le déanaí chuaigh mé go dtí Oideas Gael i nDún na nGall chun mo scileanna teanga a feabhsú. De réir an eispéireas seo tá an dúil sa Gaeilge, sa cultúr agus sa oidhreacht agam.

I had the great privilege of spending three wonderful days in Paris from 3 – 6 August for the 2024 Olympic Games. I was looking forward to this trip for the past eighteen months, having booked a package of tickets for the Games when they initially went on sale in February 2023. I knew it was a unique opportunity to make a trip of a lifetime and I wanted to be there.