Transformation

It’s September 2022 and the world has been transforming dramatically. In the two and a half years of covid19 there have been over 6 million deaths globally. Almost 7 months ago Russia invaded Ukraine. Lisdoonvarna welcomed more than 100 asylum seekers in 2018 and similarly welcomed Ukrainians in 2022. Both instances coincided with St Patricks Day and both times I found myself face painting to help settle our new residents into the Irish way of celebrating our patron saint and all round reason to party. I decided to use the image, taken by John Kelly, for this blog. I walked the length of Lisdoonvarna carrying the Irish and Ukrainian flags hoping someone from Ukraine would feel moved to carry theirs. When I turned to walk back I was approached by Kateryna from Kyiv who offered to carry the Ukrainian flag. The sun shone as we marched side by side with hundreds of people waving flags, banners and sporting shamrocks, tricolours and symbols of Ireland and Ukraine painted on their cheeks. There are now around 1,000 Ukrainians living in the Lisdoonvarna area.

It has been months since I last wrote a blog. This follows a time of personal transformation. I have recently finished the masters in Climate Change that I started in September 2020 and my mother passed away. The two had been intrinsically linked as I spent weeks in Dublin caring for my Mam while doing assignments and attending lectures online. She lost her battle with cancer on May 22nd 2022 and I submitted my dissertation on August 4th. In January 2022 I also had, in the words of the surgeon, ‘life changing surgery’. It was reversed at the end of May as it should never have happened, but that’s a whole other story!

In July 2021 I returned to my role of representing Feasta with the environmental pillar for one year. I attended COP26 in Glasgow and now represent Clare PPN with the Stop Climate Chaos coalition. I am also back on the steering group of Clare PPN and slowly returning to a strange ‘normality’ having spent the last two years intermittently caring for my mother while immersing myself in my first attempt at academia.

Now I am back and I hope to have the time to blog again. There were times during the past 2 years when I had loads to write but hadn’t the time to write or even record what needed recording. As I remember, if I remember, I will write. Although there is so much happening every day now that looking back may be impossible.

Theresa O’Donohoe

10th September 2022