Mission Blog #45
What a Week
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| Jason Peters is a great cook. |
Jacqueline Roy has become a great friend. She lives in a humble home about 45 minutes from Cork, in Ballymacoda. This is an idyllic little village not far from the Atlantic Ocean. We had gone down to visit her a few weeks ago but the weather was fowl so we didn't get to do any hiking or walking.
We picked a great day this week, mostly sunny, with a light breeze. Jacqueline selected the Capel Way Coastal Trail for a very enjoyable walk - passing the signal tower, and with stunning views of the sea cliffs, Ballycotton and Youghal Bays as well as Capel Island.
Jacqueline had one of those nifty phone apps that could tell us the flower or plant type as we walked along. These purpley/pinkey flowers are heather.
Capel Island - legend has it that there was a swimming race to the island, for ownership. As one man was about to touch land the other reached forth his sword and nipped him at the post.
Our trail began at Knockadoon Head, and the island as well as our trail area is protected as a national nature reserve by the Irish government. The tower on the island is an incomplete 19th century lighthouse. A herd of goats lives on the 314 acre island.
Some days Jacqueline says that you may see dolphins playing, or whales surfacing for a breath. We weren't lucky this day to see dolphins or whales but the views were stunning anyways.
The paths are well-maintained and the fencing keeps us from straying into danger - both the high cliffs, and some of the plants that may be poisonous.
The thistle blossoms proved a favorite of the honeybees.
The loop is about 3 km's in each direction. The turnaround point is LOP 21 (Lookout Post 21).
Ireland's signal towers were erected between 1804-1806 in response to the threat of a French invasion. The towers, spaced around the remote coastal areas, were defensible quarters for the signal crew.
The signalling system is referred to as an 'optical telegraph'. It required that each signal station be visible to its counterparts on either side. Sending a message involved raising and lowering a large rectangular flag, a smaller blue pendant and four black balls in various combinations along a system centred on a tall wooden mast. The stations also communicated with ships. Napoleon was defeated in 1815 at Waterloo so many signal towers were abandoned.
However, Ireland established a network of 83 Lookout Posts, numbering them beginning at LOP 1 in County Louth (where we previously lived), moving clockwise around the country. The Coastwatchers worked around the clock, in pairs, reporting every activity observed at sea or in the air.
Painted rocks easily seen by aircraft, identify LOP 21 Eire (Ireland).
I never tire of seeing the Irish coast.
Some locals fishing off the Knockadoon pier...
A commercial fisherman gets his day started, for lobster/crab fishing. On the other side of this slip, was a young family swimming and enjoying the day.
Once we completed the Capel Way hike, we stopped at the ice cream vendor for a 99 - had a nice conversation with the ice cream girl, Leisha, about our mission service, where we're from, etc. she liked my accent. We liked hers too.
We drove a few minutes over to Youghal to the Strand and had another good walk but this time it was on the beach. After our day of hiking the trail and beaches Jacqueline made an amazing chilli lunch for us back at her home and we continued a great visit with her.
I feel badly that I didn't take a photo of the Cork Branch Munch 'n Mingle (potluck) today while everyone was chowing down - about 100 of us. The whole day was amazing. I just took a photo of the takedown of tables/chairs.
In Branch Council this morning, the 1st Counselor in Branch Presidency, Santhosh, said that he had invited a family to come to our church. He had met them a few weeks ago when he went to their home to collect an item that he had purchased from them, from a FB Marketplace ad. It was a Sunday morning and Santhosh had his suit and tie on. They asked him where he was going that he needed to wear a suit and tie. 'To church', he replied; then they said that they were looking for a church! So he provided them our Church address and extended a sincere invitation. And then they called Santhosh this morning and said they'd be coming today.
So, about 15 minutes before church began, in walked the Roth family, 4 children 15, 12, 10, and 8 yrs old plus mom and dad (Brian and Crystal). I sat at one end of the row beside Brian and Tina sat on the other end beside Crystal. We helped them understand things as the meeting progressed, but I learned that Brian has cousins who are church members in Montana, and Idaho (he is originally from California) and some cousins had served missions in Ukraine, and southeast Asia. The talks, hymns, and testimonies were all superb today so to have visitors on a day like this, was just wonderful; then we had 5th Sunday combined Relief Society, Elders Quorum, and Young Men/Young Women and all of the short presentations in that 45 minutes were excellent. Then the potluck meal; food kept coming out and we visited with so many church members and our new friends, and had the best time. More invitations were extended to the Roth's by other families, and the young missionaries were invited to come into their home in the near future.
After Church the Elders came over and Tina made some chocolate chip cookies; a wonderful way to finish our afternoon. Elder Durham is always cold so he snuggled into Tina's Oodie.
They look pretty contented and happy but we know Elder Truman has felt the sadness of losing his grandmother this last week. Hearing him tell us about her and the good person that she was, showed us how much she meant to him.
In our all-Mission Zoom Meeting tonight, we were told about a young 31 year old woman, a member of the Church in one of the Branches of the Church within the mission. She is pregnant, but has been diagnosed with breast cancer. President McCrudden asked us to ask our family and friends to join us in uniting our faith on Amy's behalf by offering prayers for Amy during this difficult time.
Many of us know that Elder Jeffrey R Holland's (of the Quorum of 12 Apostles) wife, Patricia, passed away last week. In a tribute to her, Elder Holland said, "Among her most resonant messages was, that when your back is to the wall and your heart is breaking, you still have three things: your friends, your family, your faith."
May you all feel the blessings and strength that comes from friends, family, and your faith in whatever trials come your way.
God bless.
Elder Eric & Sister Tina McMurray
Scotland-Ireland Mission
Hello Eric & Tina, Thank you for your continue text messages and marvelous photographs. Fanny continue to wish you safety & happiness with your Scotland Extraneous Couples Mission. Our Blessings to you and all those that work with you. Good night
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