In days of yesteryear, St. Patrick's Day was always a special day around our house. You see, my grandma "came over on the boooat" (as she would say) in 1933 and until she died in 1995, her connection with the Emerald Isle was as strong as her character...like oak.
We grew up with all the trappings of an ethnically Irish household. Of course, there was the obligatory corned beef and cabbage meals, the mat out front which read "Cead Mile Failte" and those torturous Irish sweaters made of pure wool which drove me nuts! One thing I never remember though was an Irish flag flying over the house. Nothing but the stars and stripes was allowed to fly from that front porch and I think my grandfather saw to it. I never made a big deal out of it as a kid but looking back with a greater perspective on politics and current events, I see how it relates to today's immigration woes.
My grandmother was as much an American as the rest of our family, even though she spoke with a thick brogue and ran up phone bills that would make grandpa scream to the heavens! She loved the Cape, drove a Buick Wildcat and watched the Red Sox on TV38. Not once did she ever think of going back to live in Ireland but she went for a visit every summer when it wasn't the rainy season, in June. Boy, does it rain in Massachusetts but not like in Ireland, that's for sure. :)
I remember asking her once when I was small why she would leave all of her family and friends behind to come to this country, wasn't she scared? She told me the following: Even though America was in the Great Depression, it was still the promise land of freedom and opportunity that she always wanted to experience. Isn't that STILL the reason millions of people are lining up to come here?
Happy St. Patrick's Day to all who get their daily dose of Meat and Potatoes. And to my grandmother who had so massive an impact on my life, I quote the following Irish blessing:
May the sun shine warm upon your face.
And rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.