It’s really hard to believe that I only have one week left in Dublin, and yet it’s true. Although this trip has been a blast, I can confidently say I’m looking forward to being at home. I am looking forward to seeing my pups; I am looking forward to sitting down at night with my family to watch TV, and most of all I’m looking forward to making some money before heading back to school. But as of now, we still have a week left, so that’s enough talk about the future.
When I came to Ireland, I made it my goal to travel and see as much as physically possible, and I can confidently say that I have accomplished just that. I was able to pack every weekend with a new adventure, whether it was visiting different cities in Europe or sightseeing in different parts of Ireland; I was moving and learning. Last weekend, my friends and I took a trip up to Edinburgh, and when I stepped off the plane, all I could think about was how places like that could even exist. It was gorgeous! Every corner was full of amazing architecture and history that was twice as old as the United States. The city itself was extremely walkable, which made a weekend trip there fun and eventful. We were able to explore the main part of the city on Saturday, where we spent the morning walking to the author’s seat and the afternoon jumping from bar to bar to see each of the old Victorian-style pubs in the city. Each pub was expertly designed and kept to honor a specific portion of Edinburgh’s history, and the best part was the opportunity to talk to the employees there about their own unique story and connection to the pub. On Sunday, we ventured out to the Renaissance club to catch the final day of the Scottish Open, where we rooted for Chris Gottrerup as he competed against many other renowned golfers for the trophy. But I would have to say my favorite part of the trip was stumbling into an 8-person Mass Sunday morning where I was greeted with open arms by locals in the community.
As most people know, being involved in a proper church community is like being in a second family, and after that Mass, that is exactly what I became to the community of believers at St. Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral. Waking into that service, I was a stranger from a foreign country, so I naturally figured I would keep to myself and leave once the service was over. But that is not what the priest had in mind when he saw me sit down to worship; he saw a new friend of the community. So, after an amazing service, he stopped me for a conversation where we became acquainted through our journeys with Christ and shared stories about our families, eventually leading to me becoming a small part of their church community. In this, I learned the importance of communion, but not just any regular communication; the art of reaching out. Without this priest making a point to talk to me, I would have walked away from church unknowingly missing my favorite portion of the trip. It made me understand that sometimes the best memories in our lives are a conversation with a stranger away, and it made me want to reach out more and more in the future.
This past week in my internship has been a lot of fun, as always, and each week I am here, I get the opportunity to learn more and more about intellectual disabilities and how they affect people on a personal level. One of the things I began to notice this week is how much we need communication, and how hard it can be to communicate at times. Luckily, since I have been in Ireland, I haven’t run into any issues communicating with my coworkers, and I am thankful that each one of them has taken the time to explain everything to me completely and thoroughly. Because without that level of communication, I would not have been able to learn as much as I have here in Ireland and while working in the field of ID.