Iontrálacha Fhéile na hInse

DIA dhaoibh a Chairde!

Tá súil agam that you are all go maith agus ag súil le deireadh seachtaine fada na Féile Bríde / i mBolg. De réir mar a deir an seanchas, dúirt Naomh Bríd go mbeadh chuile darna lá tar éis a lá fhéin go breá. Feicfidh muid!

Thought for the week: Accepting myself

Spreading the word of positivity

Ronan Scully

AN CLÁR as Gaeilge commenced fun Irish classes for adults in Cois na hAbhna this past Dé Luain and will resume ar an 13ú Feabhra. An 8-week programme at beginners/ entry level, intermediate level, and improvers level. Beidh fáilte romhaibh!

Bígí linn do Phreab-Ghaeltacht na Féile Bríde san oíche amárach, Dé hAoine, ag 9pm i dTigh Paddy

Imeachtaí/Events:

Tá Féile na hInse ar an bhfód le tríocha naoi bliain i mbliana. Ná déanaigí dearmad bhur gcuid iontrálacha a sheoladh chugainn. Is é amárach an 3ú la de Feabhra an spriocdháta le haghaidh iontrálacha a sheoladh chugainn. Tomorrow, Friday 3rd of February, is the closing date for entries for this year’s Féile na hInse festival!

DURING the course of my 56 years of my life so far, persistent anxiety and stress have been some of the things with which I’ve wrestled the most. From childhood, I found myself anxious or stressed out in situations where it seemed most other people were not. In recent years, I’ve acquired some new habits that have helped me to live with serenity. Chiefly among the new habits is my recitation of the Serenity Prayer once or twice a day. I always take a few moments to reflect upon it and think about its application to my life in the here-andnow and how best to accept my life as I truly am.

Serenity

The Serenity Prayer is a prayer asking God to grant acceptance, courage, and wisdom for things in our life we can’t control. It also means being able to know when things are within your control and when things are beyond your control.

Quinn ar Shráid an Mhargadh, Inis!

To reserve a place and register, please contact us at: Fón: 065-6864474, e-mail/r-phost: anclarasgaeilge@gmail.com

Lean ar na meáin-shóisialta muid ag @ClárAsGaeilge. Gaeilge is for all of us to enjoy!

Until next week, tóg go réidh é! Go dtí an tseachtain seo chugainn, tógaigí go réidh é!

• Cúl-chaint le Domhnall Ó Loingsigh chuile Dé Sathairn, ag 9am ar Clare FM

• Ciorcal Comhrá san XPO, i gCill Iníne Baoith, chuile Dé Céadaoin ag 7.30pm

• Scéalaíocht do pháistí / Story time i nGaeilge le MacDara, Dé Máirt, 7ú Feabhra/February, Leabharlann De Valera, Inis, 15.15 – 15.45, Saor in aisce / Free of charge

• Preab-Ghaeltacht, Tigh Paddy Quinn, Inis, Dé hAoine, 3ú Feabhra, 9pm

• Rith le Ruairí, chuile Dé Máirt ag 6.30pm, ag Local Motion, Inis

• Caint agus Comhrá, chuile Dé Luain ag 11am sa gCopper Jug, Dé Céadaoin ag 11am in Insomnia (Tesco), oíche Déardaoin sa Temple Gate (8pm), agus Dé Sathairn i nGlór, Inis, 11am-12pm

• Scéalta agus Rannta le Chéile, chuile Dé Céadaoin i Leabharlann Shráid na Cathrach ó 10.30 – 11am, Saor in aisce / Free of charge

Gluais/Glossary

Irish/Gaeilge English/Béarla

own truth, heal from their woes and exercise ‘self and other’ compassion. When applied to any situation in our lives, this prayer works like a genius challenging us to be present, conscious and deliberate with our thoughts and choices. People who live this prayer discover how to strike a dynamic balance between acceptance and change. Many of us spend too much time anxious about things we cannot change: the economy, the weather, traffic on our roads, or people who annoy us.

As a result, we don’t have the energy to make the most of the opportunities we do have.

Acceptance is the key. If we can understand what serenity means then we can better understand what recovery from addiction, anxiety and worry is about. As humans, we have two basic strategies for handling any situation that disturbs us. One is to change the situation. For example, if we are short of a few bob, we can trim our latte or cream bun allowance or seek an increase in our weekly pay. If we are lonely we can call a loved one.

It is a wide door, one that’s open to people of all faiths, backgrounds and none. Wise people have used this prayer as a foundational rudder in their lives. It guides them to stand in their

This is how we usually cope with our anguish and distress. We try to alter the world outside us. And in many cases, this is powerful and appropriate. However, circumstances are sometimes beyond our power. We can call a friend or a loved one to suppress our loneliness, but that person may not be at home. Hoping we can control every event that comes our way is like hoping we can control the weather or how many goals Ronaldo or Messi score.

Response

In such moments, we often forget we have options and that we can change our response to the situation. Viktor Frankl was prisoner number 119104 in a concentration camp in the Second World War. He spent most of his time alone, laying tracks for railway lines. Most people assume he would have been miserable or gone insane, but even in the concentration camp, Frankl felt free. In his book, ‘Man’s search for Meaning’, he concluded that everything can be taken from us except our ability to choose our attitude in any given set of circumstances. Another name for this freedom is ‘Acceptance.’

Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.

Everything can be taken from a person but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way. Fankl discov- ered this second option while he was in the concentration camp. Escape was not feasible; he was powerless over the situation. So he responded by dwelling on thoughts that empowered him. More specifically, Frankl stayed alive to the beauty of nature. Even the Nazis could not take away sunsets.

Thought For The Week

As your thought for the week, pray for people you know who have an addiction, worry or stress in their lives including me, that they will say the Serenity Prayer and use it as a road map for their future and that we will have the courage and wisdom to use that map in our future dealings with ourselves and with others.

Pray the Serenity prayer everyday as I do, “God grant me the serenity, To accept the things I cannot change; Courage to change the things I can; And wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at a time; Enjoying one moment at a time; Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; Taking, as He did, this sinful world, As it is, not as I would have it; Trusting that He will make things right, If I surrender to His Will; So that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him, Forever and ever in the next. Amen.”

Romantic meal: Fisherman’s Hotpot

Stephen Kearney Recipes

IHAVEN’T done seafood in a while so I thought I would share a handy fish stew recipe that I have in my arsenal. This is pure handy to prepare and is a lovely dish to serve either as a starter or as a main perhaps with some rice. I am also aware that Valentine’s Day is on the way and this would make an ideal dinner dish as it is not too heavy that you would be stuffed after it and not leave room for “dessert”. As usual I will throw an instructional video up on my Instagram at the weekend, @kearneycooks, but for now let’s crack on with the recipe.

YOU WILL NEED

• 300g clams

• 150g devained prawns

• 300g washed and debearded mussels

• 200g hake or cod, cut into 2cm pieces

• 3 crushed garlic cloves

• 2 tbsp rapeseed oil

• 1 finely chopped shallot

• 1 finely chopped chilli pepper

• 1 finely sliced fennel bulb

• 1 stalk of finely chopped celery

• 1 tsp salt and pepper for seasoning

• 1 tbsp tomato puree

• 1 tsp dried oregano

• 200ml dry white wine

• 1 can chopped tomatoes

• 700ml fish or veg stock

• Zest of half a lemon

Step 1

In a big pot heat a little oil and gently fry off all your vegetables until they have slightly softened. Then add your tomato puree and oregano and stir for a further three minutes. Fire in the wine and cook on high until the liquid has reduced by half.

Step 2

Add the tinned tomatoes and the stock. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook with the lid on for 10 minutes. Add a pinch of salt and pepper, have an old taste and adjust the seasoning accordingly.

Step 3

Bring the heat back up to medium and add the clams, mussels, fish and prawns. Cover and cook until the shellfish opens and the fish and prawns are just cooked through. This should take around five minutes.

Step 4

Serve the stew up in a big bowl with some chopped parsley or chives and a sprinkling of lemon zest. This goes very well with a big old slice of crusty bread and a nice glass of Albarino on the side.