When the Weather is Nice in Ireland

Rosa and I passed our morning by making currant juice from the berries we picked and picking and cutting peaches.  The weather was glorious, again, which feels unnatural, and all the animals were scurrying around, soaking up the sunshine.  After lunch, we sat outside watching the geese splash around in the pond, creating ripples in the otherwise still water.  Harry the lamb munches on the grass in front of the pond, and Larry bounds along behind, Harry’s ever faithful companion.  Just as we returned to juice making, Yvonne told us to stop everything so we could drive to the beach and enjoy the warm weather properly.  We thought that was a great idea, so we ran over to our house to change into our swimsuits and ran back over to catch the car leaving as soon as possible for the beach.  Living in the mountains but along the ocean is so fantastic to me, it’s difficult to comprehend.  There’s nothing like the scenery here, absolutely nothing.  Brining the dogs along made the whole trip that much more enjoyable, and the ice-cream really added to the excitement.  The water was colder than I anticipated, but even so, I enjoyed the weather by taking a short dip and then laying in the sand to read a book.  Nothing says relaxation to me like reading.  I wish I took the time to read more often; it really should be more of a priority since I love it so much.  Once we got back to the house, the excitement continued because the ducks in the incubator started to hatch.  I am in love with baby animals, especially ugly ducklings.  Watching them fight their way out of their shells and open their tiny beaks to the world for the first time is magical.  They are so tiny and fragile, holding one made me feel like I was holding the world.  They were still warm to the touch, and their miniature webbed feet barely scratched my palm as I stroked their heads.  Yvonne held an unopened egg to my ear, and I could hear the faint scratching of another duckling ready to meet the world soon.  Being part of the beginning of life is so special.  So often we’re faced with the end of life or the threat of the end of life, but I don’t think the start of life is celebrated enough.  Meeting the baby ducklings for the first time was today’s version of a party in honor of the beginning of life, and being in attendance made me very happy.