Reporting Live from Quarantine…

The last time I was in Ireland, studying at Maynooth University in 2018, I adopted a kind of mantra for myself: it’s all part of the adventure. I don’t remember exactly where it came from. It was definitely related to my determination to enjoy every single moment of that semester. Mostly, I ended up repeating it when I was trying to get through various mishaps and mildly stressful situations.

Trying to figure out public transportation in an unfamiliar city? All part of the adventure. Walking for what seemed like ages to get to the hostel or Airbnb? All part of the adventure. Accidentally getting stranded in another country for a night with my friends? All part of the adventure.

There was an understanding that these mishaps would eventually be part of the stories I’d get to tell people about my semester abroad. Looking back on it now, I think it also helped me take a step back and reflect on the ways that God’s grace was present in those moments.

I’m surprised that I didn’t start repeating that mantra to myself again in the midst of my stressful travel days almost two weeks ago.

To make a long and complicated story short, I had a whole host of issues trying to fly to Dublin on October 26th. After arriving at my home airport in Detroit and checking in, my flight kept getting delayed. I wasn’t going to be able to make my connecting flight to Dublin. I ended up having to switch to an entirely different airline with a new flight plan that could still get me to Dublin on the 27th. But eventually, that new flight out of Detroit had a major delay due to maintenance issues, meaning that once again, I was going to miss my connecting flight.

After calling my Mom crying from the gate, I decided to put off my travels until the next day, rescheduling for another group of flights that would get me to Ireland on the 28th. I collected my luggage for the second time that day and went home, extremely stressed out, but grateful that I could get a good night’s sleep in my own bed.

Saying goodbye to my Mom and Dad at the airport on the 26th…little did we know, I’d be back home that evening!

The third time did prove to be the charm. I arrived in Dublin on the 28th after fifteen long, but comparatively uneventful, hours of travel. After a trip on the Wexford bus, I was greeted by Clare, Joseph, and Fr. Denis, and headed off to Kilmore to start my quarantine.

Over these two weeks, I’ve had plenty of time to take a step back and realize that those difficult travel days were indeed all part of the adventure. In those two days, God’s grace was present in a number of ways, perhaps most noticeably in the kindness of the people at the airport who helped me through that stressful time.

God’s grace was present in the form of the check-in desk worker for the first airline, who, after helping me with both my initial check in and my eventual airline change, wished me good luck and told me about the wonderful time she had living and working in Italy with her husband. It was present in the form of the women at the gate desk who helped me reschedule my flights and commiserated with me and my travel woes. (One of them was at the gate desk for my flight the next day too. She recognized me, smiled, and said, “You’re actually getting on board today! Congrats!”) It was present in the form of the people at the second airline’s check in desk, who very generously didn’t charge me for my overweight suitcase.

Since then, I’ve been even more attuned to God’s grace in my life. In the last two weeks, it’s been present in the form of my housemate and quarantine buddy Anibee, whose company has been so wonderful (especially through the rollercoaster that was the U.S. elections). It was present in the beautiful walk we took to Kilmore Quay the other day. It’s present in the immense kindness of Fr. Denis, who has been checking in on us and bringing lots of groceries and lovely meals. God’s grace is present in our Zoom calls with Clare and Joseph, as we prepare to finally be all together at the Cluain Dara house! And it’s present in the sunny days when I can sit out in the garden and read for a little while.

A walk to the quay for the quarantined half of the Wexford house!

I have no idea what these upcoming months will bring. But I’m looking forward to finding all of the ways that God’s grace will keep showing up in my life throughout this adventure.