Day 6: Bring on the Ruane's

This morning started like any other my Irish vacation . Breakfast at the hotel and then out the door to see a new site . This morning I chose St Patrick's Cathedral. it was built in around the Year 1100 and it is the most beautiful Cathedral . What I find strange about this Cathedral is that since St Patrick brought Catholicism to Ireland this is a Church of England Cathedral . Its rector was at one time Jonathan Swift.

It was six and half euros to get into the cathedral but I have to say it was worth the money . The the choir loft and the organ were very impressive.  the stained glass windows a magnificent.
At this point I was pretty tired and went back to my hotel I actually fell asleep.

At about 2 o'clock it was time to head to meet the Ruane's. I was very excited. When I got there the only one there was Noel, dad's cousin. Within a few minutes however people started to get there. When was there with her boyfriend Ronan and her daughter, Jaelynn. When's mother Bernie in her brother Jay came with his wife and his son Jaden. Barney , who is Noel's deceased brother, and also a brother to Michael Ruane had his three children there. Paul, Brian and Tricia were there with their families . Frank Ruane from Manchester was there with his sons, Steven and Michael.
Conversation was easy and the Ruane's in Dublin tended to work in construction. They were all very nice and down to earth people. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to meet them. Although I may never see them again I know that they are there . But I would also feel very comfortable calling them again if I was visiting Dublin to have dinner or a cup of coffee.

I really can't describe the feeling I had about the whole afternoon. Although I was very much part of the conversation I also took a long time to sit back and just take it all in. I was surprised that Lynch brother was the one who was most impressed by the fact that we had relatives anywhere . He would love to come to Boston and his son, Jaden really would like to learn about the history. He asked me many questions about how we were related and wanted to see the pictures of the people that really brought us all together. Although my grandfather and his brothers and sisters maybe the people that brought us together, in a way, it really was my father who really brought this together. My father always loved his family and wanted his brothers and sisters to be together and he always was curious about my grandfather and whether he had brothers and sisters in the area. He knew about a couple of my grandfather's sisters but other than that we had no idea. He used to say that my grandfather had a brother out in Stow Massachusetts but as I have since found out it was a sister, Mary Ann Kelly. I can't help but think how proud my father would be today if he were here.  He would just love this. This would make him so happy. I do hope he's watching this .

On a side note, I really come to like Frank Ruane in Manchester. He is a warm and sincere man and we are becoming good friends. It's just unfortunate that he lives so far. Is this day ended this Gathering was not so much a culmination but a beginning.