Today in Ireland, is what is known as a “Bank Holiday.” This is a tradition that is unique to non-continental Europe. On the Bank Holiday, everybody takes the day off from work and goes to have a big party at their favorite Bank. It is truly the perfect mix of food and music and withdrawal slips, and every American should experience it at least once in their life. (Note from the House Director: The above description is not even remotely accurate in portraying what a bank holiday actually entails. A Bank Holiday simply means that the banks are closed, and, as a result, most businesses shut down as well. It’s kind of like Labor Day in the States. As far as the description above goes: Patrick simply made it up as he is still getting a grasp on some of the finer points of Irish culture. It does sound fun though, so I let him roll with it. He’s going to be really disappointed when we never make it to the Bank today.)

In keeping with the spirit of the Bank Holiday, we are not going into work today; and it’s definitely nice to have a day of recovery after our busy weekend. On Saturday night, our choir grew in size by 50 percent as Folkheads past and present joined us for our regular Vigil mass. Sadly, our visitors had to leave early Sunday morning and missed out on our exciting Sunday, which started with a trip to the South East Radio studios to sing for a mass that was broadcast throughout the county. From there, we went to a special mass in celebration of the Wexford Opera Festival. The music was outstanding, and Bishop Brennan’s homily on the Psalms was truly moving to hear as a musician. After mass, we were invited to a beautiful lunch back at the Presbytery. It was really just one of the many examples of the unbelievable hospitality we have been shown by the local community here, and served as a reminder that we really cannot thank everyone enough for the kindness and generosity we are shown on a daily basis.

Also, in keeping with the festive mode of the town right now, it should be a relatively light week at work. All of the primary schools are out for the week on their midterm break, so we’ll be focused primarily on our liturgical responsibilities in the Parish. Check back on Friday to see how it all went.