Dance

Dance as if no one were watching.
Sing as if no one were listening.
Live every day as if it's your last.
                             Irish Proverb

I once asked Andrew Greeley what do you call someone who is half Irish and the rest a mixture of English, Scottish, Cherokee, and Amish. His answer was "Irish." I am a mixture of all of the above but the part of me that resonates the strongest is the Irish and that is what I refer to myself as. I am an Irish-American Catholic if you want to narrow it down further.

To be Irish Catholic is to have grown up knowing prejudice and hatred. I remember the absolute furor when John Kennedy ran for President because he was Irish Catholic. It was amazing that he managed to overcome the prejudice that was thrown up against him and win. It wasn't too far in the past that his relatives were seeing signs that said "No dogs or Irishmen allowed."

The history of Ireland is a history of pain and violence. It is only in the last couple of years with the Northern Ireland Good Friday Peace Accord that there has been anything resembling peace in that country. Still there is the perception that Irish are nothing but drunkards and terrorists.

To me being Irish means I am a part of an complex and beautiful people and heritage. The Irish are poets, and writers, and singers, and dancers, and artists. There is a melancholy that is part of the Irish soul that allows a person to create the most beautiful and sometimes sad pieces of work. The Irish are a people who have overcome obstacles that would seem to be unsurmountable yet they as a nation are now known as the Celtic Tiger. To be Irish is to know how to survive and triumph.

So today take the Irish proverb to heart and sing and dance and live. The picture is called May You Dance.