As Jess mentioned on Monday, we have had a busy week! On Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, we awoke to the bright spring sunshine and headed out to Ballyvaloo with our friend Ann to lead some Confirmation retreats. The days with the Kennedy Park and Scoil Mhuire 6th classes went very well. One of my favorite parts of the retreat is the informal sharing of Confirmation names. It’s a strong tradition to choose a family name here, and the kids usually are surprised and interested to find out that most family names they chose are also saint names. One of my groups this week included four boys who all chose “John” after their grandfathers or uncles. They were amazed to hear that there are more than four saints John. At the end of the retreats, everyone left singing snippets of “Be God’s,” the song we use at the end of the closing prayer service, and finishing their bracelets so they can wear them on their Confirmation day.
When we weren’t leading retreats, we popped in and out of the parish to take care of things for Mass this weekend. I’m still working with the Kennedy Park choirs for Confirmation and First Communion. On Friday, I ended up staying a bit longer at the school than planned, to work with soloists for both celebrations. Their big days are fast approaching! Yesterday, we also welcomed Mr. and Mrs. Nowak to our home for a visit. No sooner had they arrived and shared lunch with us than we took the bus back to Dublin for the April ACE gathering at O’Connell House. Jessica gave a beautiful post-communion reflection on generosity, leaving everyone in a thoughtful silence until the priest said, “That was top-class, wasn’t it?” and applauded. We really have hit the ground running this week. Dan, Kurt, and Mr. Nowak will continue that theme as they race in the Wexford Half-Marathon tomorrow. Please keep them in your prayers!
