It’s a scorching hot summer’s day
and many people make a bee-line
for the coast
so when we arrive
at Ravensdale
it feels like we have the forest
all to ourselves!

We dander along
meandering, grassy paths
lined with fox gloves
and raspberry bushes.
Large orange butterflies
flutter among the tree tops
while tiny white butterflies
play chasies,
swirling and cavorting
above our heads.
A grasshopper chirrups
and stone-chats chatter
as we pass by.

And all the while,
blue skies overhead!
(We feel like we’re in France!)

A day of discovery
for our wee family
as we explore
in an unfamiliar forest
and journey home
along spectacular mountain roads.

Thank you, Lord,
for this precious family time –
a time to explore, picnic
and enjoy “time-out”
from life’s cares and worries.

Just what we needed!

© Claire Murray, 22nd July 2021

It’s a blisteringly hot
summer’s day
(very un-Irish!)
and we decide to say our Rosary
in the garden.

A breeze gently brushes past
as we sit in the comfortable coolness
of the shade –
a welcome respite
from the scorching sun!

We are surrounded
by the sounds of summer.

Traffic sounds
out on the road.
Birds cheeping, trilling
and scolding all around.
Trees creaking
as the wind blows.
Water trickling musically
in a water feature.
The tickling of an insect
on my arm.

I ask Our Lady
to protect us,
to protect our family
and to protect mankind
in these uncertain,
unprecedented times.

And as we pray our Rosary
I have a sense
that Our Lady is sitting with us
right here,
in our garden-
peaceful, beautiful
and simply amazing.

Our Lady …
Queen of the Rosary,
Queen of Heaven
and, I sense,
Queen of our Garden!

© Claire Murray, 19th July 2021

One sunny summer day
we drive down
to Greenore.
This a place of great beauty –
the craggy Coolie mountains
on one side
and the steep-sided Mournes
on the other.

Today proves to be
everything that we had hoped for –
picnic by the sea,
white goats basking in the sun,
birdsong all around.

Surely such perfection
couldn’t be improved upon?

Turning a corner
we stop and point
in astonishment.
A huge field stretches way out
in front of us
but instead of the usual
crop of spuds
a huge section of the field
forms an expanse of purple
as thousands of tiny purple flowers
tremble in the sea breeze!

Wow!

This is reminiscent
of the south of France
where fields are filled
with row after row
of lavender.

I have a sense
that My God has taken
an ordinary walk by Greenore
on a sunny day
and transformed it
into something
wholly extraordinary.

Thank you, Lord
(my God of Surprises!)

© Claire Murray, 4th July 2021

After days of rain
the skies clear,
the sun appears
and we head off in the car
to Glenariff.

It’s late spring.
Bluebells, violets
and misty-globed dandelions
line our path.
Clumps of brown, spiney rushes
hunch over
like giant porcupines.
Ferns begin to unfurl,
their tips still curled-up
like sea-horse tails.
Wild strawberry blossoms
and baby bilberries
(still so tiny and pink)
edge the steep path
to the waterfall.

At the summit,
a lone buzzard
patrols the sky
while we gaze across
a green-blue satin sea
to the hills of Scotland.

Glenariff in springtime,
steeped in beauty, birdsong
and peace.
Such a perfect place
for a family day-out.

Thank you, Lord!

© Claire Murray