Thoughts...contd.

I do not have it all figured out, but I'm trying. Things tend to get clearer, and then fuzzier and then clearer again. Sometimes I wonder if these fluctuating feelings will always be with me, or if I will grow out of it. Overall though, I do feel like I am gaining perspective. I just have to continue to step back and look at the bigger picture. It can be too easy to get caught up in the small stresses and worries of the day.

We are on the van ride back to Belfast airport. The scenery really is beautiful. It's a grey morning, but the sun was shining brightly on our way in yesterday, lighting up the bright green hills and pastures. All of my trips to the U.K. and Ireland have instilled an even deeper desire in me to really explore this place. I've wanted for so long to discover my Irish roots. I feel like it is some necessary step in becoming who I am. The transitoriness of these layovers frustrate me in a way, but I have to keep looking at the bigger picture; one day I will get more than a glimpse. If I choose too, I can come back and truly discover this place.

Maybe I'll even learn Gaelic, or "Irish," as the Irish say. ;)
Anyway...Even if they have been just glimpses, I have had many wonderful experiences so far. I've seen the sheep grazing in Northern Ireland, I've run into "wild" horses on a walk in Limerick, I've had a Jameson straight from the distillery in Dublin and I've roamed the picturesque town of Bristol in England. My little glimpes into the towns, cities and countries that I am not native of have made my world smaller and given me a window into how the rest of the planet spends their days. What a great blessing I've been given! What an adventure so far...