Olympic Pride

I was really proud to be Irish last night.... And I'm not Irish. It all started when I needed to run into the village to get eggs and milk. It was a rainy cool evening but Deedra was making pancakes and well... I'll go on a milk run if it means that I'll get pancakes! As I drove the mile in to the village I kept passing bonfires on the side of the road. I kept seeing more and more... so many that there were 9 just between our house and the store. Some of the fires were really small (like camp fires) and others were so large that I could feel their heat as I passed by. All of these fires were in honor of a local woman that represented Ireland in the Athens Olympic Games! She didn't win a medal, but she represented Ireland and the village well.... And the people came out to welcome her home. Cars were honking horns... Houses flew their Irish flags... And there was a huge Irish flag paraded into the center of the village as the Olympian road atop an open double decker bus. There was a small ceremony that took place where a small group of musicians playing traditional Irish music, kids clamored to get an autograph, and people cheered for their favorite athlete. The highlight for me was when she was presented with a large bouquet of flowers by the village's special Olympian. The two held hands and raised them high in the air... The crowd cheered... And I could really sense a pride that didn't come from winning medals....



The town Olympian (In white) atop the bus.


Preparing the flag to be carried into the village.
(You can see one of the bonfires in the distance).