Green Day

I love the group Green Day's song "Good Riddance." Didn't know the real title until this morning cuz I always thought it was "The Time of Your Life." Titles don't always matter. It's the message that counts, and "Good Riddance" has put together an upbeat message for anyone about to embark on any journey.

The band and then the song came to mind while I was plotting the title for my post.

"Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)"

Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road
Time grabs you by the wrist, directs you where to go
So make the best of this test, and don't ask why
It's not a question, but a lesson learned in time

It's something unpredictable, but in the end it's right.
I hope you had the time of your life.

It seems like a good fit for a St. Paddy's Day. This day has come to mean more and more to me over the past few years. I knew I was half Irish from childhood, but when my mother reconnected with and discovered her Chicago roots, the percentage went up, by a lot. I now know that there's a little English and a little French, but most of my ancestors are Irish.

Last year was a banner year for being a whole lot of Irish. First, Annie went to Ireland and spent a week. She also took hundreds of photos of her trip and then put a bunch of them on a CD set to some haunting and jolly Irish tunes.

I've watched that CD many times, and, without exception, parts of it bring me to tears. And, they're not sad tears; they're just the visible remnants of the strong emotions within.

I've always been a very emotional person---I laugh hard, cry hard, get real mad, and, in general, feel deeply---and I think a lot of that comes from being Irish.

In 2009, I saw and visited with most of my Irish cousins, a whole bunch of them in Chicago last May. What a time that was! Definitely etched in the mind forever.

In August, my Dooley clan cousins came to the Lovestead, and we had St. Patrick's Day in the summer, topped off by a crazy, rollicking time dancing to tunes on the jukebox at Second Avenue Pizza.

The Irish do crazy things at times, and that night two of my cousins signed a contract with Carolyn Gleason (owner of Second Avenue and organizer of Lost in the '50s) to come back to Sandpoint and perform some lip synching at the fairgrounds Lost in the '50s dance. So, we can plan on another day where some folks "have the time of their lives."

This Irish celebration day has always been fun, and I can't remember a year without wearing green. This year, after all the past year's Irish experiences, I'm seeing green more than ever before.

And, I'm definitely planning to follow Green Day's instructions of letting time direct me and having the time of my life today. May you do the same.