Fascinating Ireland!

Hello out there! We are only in Ireland for a couple more days, so though you'd like to see some snapshots...Here is Christy trying to learn cooking from Faith...and the little one is lovely Ropa, wonderful people to be staying with! Joseph and I took a road trip to Ring of Kerry, Dingle Peninsula and Killarney... Then we went up to the cliffs of Moher in County Clare, and were there by ourselves for the sunrise...(cliff photo). The cool shaped stone building is Gallarus Oratory, a 1000 year old church built by monks on Dingle! The guy with the Kerry hat is a fine example of how excited everyone is about Rugby here. Then the photo of Joseph by the water is at the Place where Brendan set voyage to bring the gospel to the unknown land. The sepia photo of us is next to some

surviving bee-hive houses that look like homey places to live.

The boat is in Killarney Nat'l Park where we got close to a grazing deer.

The sunsets and sunrises are glorious when you can spot 'um.

Some tips for driving on the one lane Irish roads that are actually two-way...Keep a look out for tractors, farmers, walkers and painted sheep, honk around blind corners watch out for rabbits, and don't forget to pray.

Off to England next..willbe in touch.

we are well and in joy.

Sincerely, J and C

County Cork, IRELAND

Hi there!
Well, we wrote to a community we found online with the help of our friend Dave, and asked if they had somewhere we can stay on the floor for a couple weeks...they wrote back and said they were expecting us. Doug, one of the overseers picked us up at the bus and gave usa phone to use while we are here. We are staying with a wonderful lady from Zimbabwe, named faith and her 3 year old daughter, Ropa. We are having a good time getting to know them and others around here. I am trying to learn to cook some dishes from Zimbabwe, and we are spending lots of time with Ropa!
Doug brought us to see Blarney castle yesterday and it is scary trying to kiss that stone...you have to lean backwards from the top of the castle and whatnot..anyway we did that...so supposedly we have the gift of gab now, and a few new germs I'm sure.
It is well, we are here for another week and a half.
It is lovely!
Blessings,
Joseph and Christy

Dublin Photos

DubLiN

Hi there! Here is a little of the latest on our whereabouts and whatabouts...

We have really enjoyed the time in Dublin, and just returned from a service at Christ Church, the oldest in Dublin, and where Handel's Messiah was first performed. The choir and Organ were overwhelming and eerie, but beautiful.

We had the joy of listening to some wonderful traditional Irish music last night. We went to a pub where we saw a sign for music and it turned out to be a good choice...full of Irish characters instead of tourists, and almost everyone there knew the songs and heartfully sang along. We also met a poet named Patrick Finnigan, who we had a good time talking with. (photo below of his books, he read aloud from one of them and was very convincing).. Oh, and we went and sang on the street yeterday, what fun...

The other day we were blessed to go see the Book of Kells. It's a book written in the 8th century by a small group of monk scribes depicting the 4 gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The artistry and detail is truly incredible. No pictures were allowed to be taked so you might be lucky to find some images on the web if interested. Here is an 11th century poem in honor of St. Columba, who had a great deal to do with the inspiration of the Book of Kells :

My hand is weary with writing

My sharp quill is not steady

My slender beaked pen juts forth

A black draught of shining dark blue ink

A stream of the wisdom of blessed God

springs from my fair brown shapely hands

on the page it squirts its draught

of ink of the green-skinned holly

My little dripping pen travels

Across the plain of shining books

Without ceasing for the wealth of the great-

Whence my hand is weary of writing

While here, we visited a Famous Library Collection and were able to see some amazing writtings from 150-250 A.D. Writings of the Books of the Bible, written in Greek on Papyrus..some of the oldest found texts of the Scriptures! Wow!

We have been couchsurfing with a kind host from Ghana, Andrew. He made us a great breakfast this morning and has been a blessing! There is a photo of us with him below.
Other photos include, the city market, cafe photos of Joseph and I, and a funny pub name...
Tomorrow, we are taking a bus to Cork to stay for a while with a fellowship called Ballincollig/Celtic Prayer Center...Will be in touch.
Lots of love,
Have a jolly good day and enjoy yourself and others.
J and C

C.S. Lewis...photos to go with entry below

Here is the door on C.S. Lewis' Grandfathers house....hmmm...when Lewis was a wee boy, this is the doorknob he saw at eye level every time he went to Granddad's door. Then, a wardrobe mural, and a wardrobe statue....and this is what is carved into the ground next to the lifesize Wardrobe, written of Lewis. This is Rev. Jack our host looking at a window C.S. lwis gave the church.
love you!

C.S. Lewis, a Belfast Boy.

Hello!
We have been staying at a ywam house here, which is connected to an old stone church. We were invited to the Sunday evening service, so we went and they asked us to share a bit about Alaska and different places we've been. Then they gave us a bag of groceries...the next morning the pastor showed us the place where C.S. Lewis was born, the church where he was baptized and his Grandfather was a minister, the home of His grandfather, a mural of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, and a bronze statue of the wardrobe ... i just tried to put photos on here for you, but the library won't let me ...sorry! The welcoming hearts are so incredible!
We miss you. ..Joseph and Christy

Reels at McHugh's in Belfast - Have a wee listen!

The Irish Goat

Ireland Photo Notes

Hi! We are in Belfast staying at the YWAM house on the floor for free, what a BLESSING! Thanks to Jesus and Padraig. There is a great Traditional Irish Music Festival going on here, and great opportunities to get to learn from the YWAM team here whose main focus is reconciliation and forgiveness.

Our Anniversary weekend was awesome, we got to explore some in N. Ireland and also Donegal in Ireland. It really is a Wow-a-minute here!

Here is a description of the photos below, if you just keep scrolling...

1. Murlough Bay, one of the prettiest places in N. Ireland..we got to see butterflies and goats and put our feet in the water here.
2. A beautiful colorful village we drove through, Killykiel (sp?)
3. The cliffs at Bunglas are the highest cliffs in Europe and the wind was INTENSE, it blew us up the mountain effortlessly! (Not so effortless was the journey back down)
4. Christy in her new red hand-knit in Ireland sweater, an Anniversary present from Joseph...The background is the Cliffs at Bunglas with a rainbow...(we have seen 11 or 12 rainbows in the last week! ...still looking for the pot of gold, haha....
5. Joseph being a climbing guy.
6. This is the rad beach we had all to ourselves on our Anniversary and went swimming with the huge waves!
7. (black and white) Inch Abbey, 12th Century ruins near where St. Patrick lived.
8. A steeple in Belfast
9 and 10. The Giant's Causeway, N. Ireland, formed a really really long time ago by lava, or just a creative touch of God.
11. A rope bridge 100 feet over the ocean that led to a beautiful island.

HOPE YOU ENJOY THESE!
LOTS OF LOVE! HAVE AN INCREDIBLE DAY!
Joseph and Christy

First Anniversary Sell-uh-brae-shee-own!

The Gorgeouseness of N. Ireland!

Northern Ireland and Ireland!

We just want to let you know we have been in Northern Ireland and Ireland for a few days...We celebrated our One year Anniversary and it was awesome! Joseph planned a beautiful time...we will write with photos in 1 or 2 days. Ireland is a blessed country!
We love you!
Joseph and Christy

Christy thoughts accompanied by Scotland's beauty

Gradually you forget to remind yourself of the offenses

that you had let disturb you so.

You decide to lose the frown and let your smile show

The kindess of the Scottish folk

The haggis and heather of the highlands

brings creative life to your tired hands

To find beauty in the feet soaked through

and through and through

and in the eyes that light the grey to white

that washes over the room

I'd like to build a house of stone

with trees tall by the stream, and be there in

the winter and for the coloring of the leaves

Today we saw the first tree, seasoned with Autumn's breath.

A poem(w/ photos of Scotland hikes, ferry ride, and swimming)

The Return...(for Christy)

Bursting blooming, autumn looming

the hills are full and shaggy

with heather a-rain drenched, the clouds broke open

and blessed us, me and my lady.

Each drop that soaked through to our shoulders

and rose through the souls of our shoes

served as a reminder to our spirits

th'we were never far from You.

For You fill up our hearts like rain fills up our fabrics

once dried up-the tear-ducts were empty.

Is that rain on the street? Or the movements of feet?

You're turning our mourning to dancing.

websites

Hey, check out www.isleofberneray.com
the "hostel" we are staying in is the picture between the sheep and the boats. You can get an idea of what it is like here. Also www.glencoescotland.com and www.skye.co.uk you'll see pictures of the places we just came from. Love and God Bless

Haggis and Heather, the Highlands and the Islands

Scotland has been fantastic. Flying in, we already felt welcome, and since arriving a week and a half ago, the spirit still remains. We stayed with a beautiful and hospitable family for a few nights in Glasgow, where Joseph met up with an old friend for a couple days of fellowship, then we thought we would travel north a bit, visiting the Highlands and seeing the beautiful lochs(lakes). Christy was here over a year ago just after her best friend Shyloh passed away and the land was rugged and brown, just before spring. This time around the land is bursting over the top with greenery and many different shades of heather. We feel this is a new season we are going into... :) From the Highlands we ferried over to the Isle of Skye and had an incredible time of hiking, exploring, hitching, and just standing in awe before our Creator. Yesterday we ferried over to the Isles of the Outer Hebrides and we are staying in centuries old thatched roof stone cottage right on the ocean. Last night we saw the most magnificent display of the Milky Way either of us may have ever seen, and this morning we woke to a big storm, so it is mostly indoor weather, with time to read and pray. We will post some pictures soon, along with some poetry we wrote when sitting in a pub listening to traditional music when we get the chance. We love and miss you. May we all go under the Mercy

Eiffel Tower Etc. For Emily

Fruit and Flowers of Medieval Flavigny France

Happy to be in Scotland.

Hoohah.
We flew from Paris to Glasgow, Scotland yesterday and are staying with beautiful friends here. They are such fun to talk with and they are keen on having bees around so they can harvest honey...so Joseph got stung on his eyelid this morning, but he's a trooper and it healed up well.

Flavigny,France (where Chocolat was filmed), was so quiet and so lovely...we walked and explored a lot there and were amazed by the quaint and simple beauty there, the flowers, forests, valleys...And there is no chocolaterie there, but there is an Anis Sweets factory, so the fragrance wafts through the village bringing even more atmosphere.

Paris was of course not quiet, but it has it's own beauty. Our niece, Emily asked for a photo of the Eiffel tower, so here it is Em! We walked our heels off here, saw the Mona Lisa, and art galore, and had a great time getting lost in the streets of Paris.
We are looking forward to the time in Scotland and will be in touch.
Love J and C