May your blessings outnumber the shamrocks that grow. And may
trouble avoid you wherever you go.
Irish
Blessing
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| The fountains dyed green for Saint Patty's Day - Downtown Augusta |
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| EZ and gang ready for the parade |
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| Fun at the staging area |
Saint
Patrick’s day is a day that everyone is Irish. It really doesn’t
matter if it is part of your ancestry or not, you enjoy the day as an
Irishmen. But if you are by blood Irish, this day brings a sense of
pride for dear old Ireland. It is a day full of green everywhere
and on everyone sometimes accented with interesting accessories.
Bars and restaurants serve green beer and drinks and corned beef and
cabbage to celebrate the day. There are parades and celebrations
everywhere in the United States.
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| Safety brief before the parade by Bill Reid |
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| Safety brief with Cliff Bennett, Bill's secret mime |
Today,
Joe and I joined up with a large group of friends, and ride EZ, the
firetruck in the Saint Patty’s Day parade. This is a firetruck
that was bought by a group of friends, just for parades. We met at
our favorite local pub, The Fox’s Lair and ride to the James Brown
Civic Center where we line up. That is our pregame or tailgate
where we have food brought by some friends to include, chicken salad
sandwiches, Pimento Cheeses, grilled pork chops and chicken, pork
taquitos, chips, and cups cakes made with Guinness and Baileys cream
cheese frosting. There was also beer from the keg that is built
into EZ and jello shooters. It is a nice time getting to catch up
with our friends. We each get a bunch of green beaded necklaces to
throw to the excited crowds on Broad Street.
Fun at the staging area
As
we entered the parade route this year, we notice how huge the crowds
were. We had never seen so many people before attending this
parade. It was a sea of green and everyone enjoying the day. We
passed many beautiful buildings and churches on the way. It was a
great parade. Afterwards, we topped off the day by hearing Dr. John
Fisher at the Fox’s Lair with his group of musicians playing Irish
music including Henry Wynn who is an amazing fiddle player. It was a
great Saint Patty’s Day.
Saint
Patrick’s Day (Feast of Saint Patrick) is a cultural religious
celebration on March 17th. Saint Patrick’s real name is
Maewyn Succat and he was born AD 385, and was captured captured by
Celtic pirates and worked as a herdsman. He later escaped and
became a Christian Priest and decided on the name Patrick. In the
mid fifth century he went to Ireland as a missionary.
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| Yeah - Beads |
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| Nice beard |
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| Most Holy Trinity |
He
was known for establishing schools, churches, and monasteries and in
later years was appointed Bishop of Ireland. He helped to convert
135,000 people to Christianity. The way the shamrock became a part
of this day was he used the leaves to describe the holy trinity.
His color was blue and not green. The green didn’t show up until
the 18th century. The legend states Saint Patrick
banished all snakes and sent them into the ocean and even to this
day, Ireland has no wild snakes.
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| Debriefing |
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| John Fisher and band playing Irish music at the Fox's Lair |
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| Heather, Deb and Ed celebrating the day at the Fox's Lair |
The
first Saint Patrick’s Day parade was held in New York City on March
17, 1762. So our firetruck adventure this year was the 257th
year of Saint Patrick’s Day parades in the United States.
May
the Road Rise up to Meet You
May
the road rise up to meet you.
May
the wind be always at you back.
May
the sun shine warm upon your face;
the
rains fall soft upon you fields
and
until we meet again,
may
God hold you in palm of His hand.
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