The Final Countdown

The sun is out and the sky is clear and it’s another beautiful day in Tully Cross. It’s sad to realize that these days are numbered, and that by this time next week I’ll be looking at my neighborhood outside my window instead of a mountain, and that I will probably never see as many stars at night in Grand Rapids as I can see here. It is definitely a bittersweet feeling and this week will be sure to bring a roller coaster of emotions that we will all undoubtedly experience from being excited to see friends and family back home to sadness over leaving our “Ireland Family.”

As I said in my last post, the weeks have gotten rather hectic around here lately, a significant change of pace for all of us who are used to a laid back type of education out here. How we’ll make it back in the Academic Building next year, I have no idea. Yet amidst the studying and papers that have been looming over our heads, we’ve made sure to take in our surroundings and fully embrace Tully Cross while we’re still here. In honor of Dr. Dawson’s family departing, we played one last game of Quidditch down on the pitch and the cottages united to make “Brinner” (Breakfast for Dinner) for her family as their last dinner in Tully Cross before sending them off the next day. It’s been different without having Liam, Emily and Allison around. They definitely added to our Tully Cross experience with Liam always knocking on our door dying to play some soccer and Allison joining us on every hike, sometimes having more of a sense of adventure than any of us. During one of their last days here, Dr. Dawson appointed me Liam’s “Uncle” because I became in charge of him on the bus. This seemed to stick with Liam as he began referring to me as “Uncle Rob!” Somehow that has resulted in me being Dr. Dawson’s brother…I’m not sure if she wants to be that close to the Abid family. She’s already got Chris to deal with. Nevertheless, the French children are surely missed here, and as they departed, the reality set in for the rest of us that our time in Ireland is winding down.

Maybe it’s not so much the realization that our time here is coming to an end, as it is that our time with each other is coming to an end. If there’s one thing that we have as a group, it’s definitely a sense of family. There have been countless nights here, especially in the past few days, where we all end up together outside or in the pub enjoying each other’s company. In the past few days, we’ve been doing a lot of grilling because the weather has been so nice out. The first night we had the grills operational was a gorgeous spring evening last week. We broke out burgers, hotdogs, and vegetables and had a great night out by the picnic tables blasting some music and enjoying everyone’s company. Some of us walked down the road a little bit and watched the sun set behind Tully Mountain and shortly thereafter, the moon began to rise over the Diamond. It was an absolutely clear and beautiful night topped off by great people and of course, great food grilled by yours truly.

We also banded together this past weekend and prepared an Easter feast. Beth, Bailey, Dr. Dawson and I went into Clifden to buy the supplies we needed while finding the best Mocha in all of Connemara at Welsh’s Bakery. Needless to say, I was an extremely happy camper. My friend from High School who is studying in Poland, Pete, came to Ireland to spend Easter with us. After much e-mailing and messaging back and forth, I got him on the bus from Galway to Letterfrack and he arrived on Saturday evening as Dr. Dawson and I eagerly awaited his arrival outside the grocery store. Dr. Dawson was extremely happy to have him as she feels it is our “obligation to all international students to welcome them with open arms, especially during holidays away from home.” Pete integrated with the group extremely well and joined us for the annual hike up Tully Mountain on Easter morning which I led. Unfortunately, it required a 5:00 a.m. wake up and also unfortunately, we got rained on the entire time. We fought our way through the extremely wet weather and the dense fog, and finally made it to the top of the mountain. It was cold, windy, and rainy, but the memory of that hike and of every single person on the trip making it to the top was worth it. Upon our descent, it began to clear up, the rain stopped, and by the time we had made it to the cottages, the sun was peaking through the clouds and we had a beautiful rest of the day. Apparently there’s an Irish saying that goes “If it’s raining before 7, it will be done for the day by 11.” This was certainly the case as we had gorgeous weather and were able to eat our Easter Feast outside between cottages 5 and 6. Pete helped me man the grill which cooked the salmon. If you’re reading this Dad, I think I’ve inherited your grilling ability, but I still need to work on the grill marks.

After the feast, most of us entered a food coma. Pete and I caught up on life, school, and anything else that came to mind before heading down to the pitch to play some Ultimate Frisbee with Jake. That night the pubs were packed. Pete and I headed to Sammons where he enjoyed some Guinness and was in Heaven. He got chatty with Dr. Dawson and they talked for a good hour or so before Pete and I were the only ones left from our group in the pub. Sadly, we missed last call at the bar so we took the walk across the street and settled in for the evening since we had to get him on the bus to Dublin in the morning. Dr. Dawson drove us down to Letterfrack and I gave Pete some Dublin tips and saw him off.

We are two finals and a few hiking journals away from completing the semester. Tonight is our History final, which everyone is diligently studying for, and tomorrow we face our Literature final. After our Literature final we are holding “Student Awards” in Tully Cross, and the evening will be capped off by a video montage that I’ve been preparing this semester of our experience in Ireland. Look for it on Facebook on Thursday after its debut. Thursday we are hosting the “Thanks from the Yanks” party, when we repay the locals for all of their generosity this past semester and cook them dinner and hold a party at the pub. Bailey, Beth and I will head into Clifden again with Dr. Dawson tonight to get the supplies. I’m helping Dr. Dawson make hummus and I’ll be manning the grill, again. Aside from that, this week will be spent making the most of what little time we have left here.

My last update from Ireland will come at some point this weekend in between all of the activities we have planned for ourselves and for the community. Until then…

Peace. Love. Ireland.

Rob