My Favourite Leprechaun
What does St Patrick’s Day mean to you? Green beer? Late night bar adventures? Green hats, shamrock glasses, and leprechauns? Well, to me, it means celebrating the love of my life – my husband. You see, he was born on St Patrick’s day and his heritage is Irish, so March 17 is a celebration not only to Ireland, but to my Irish husband. My favourite leprechaun.
As you slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point in the wrong direction – An Irish Saying
Do you know the history behind St Patrick? We learned a bit when we were visiting Ireland back in 2019. What I didn’t know was that he brought Christianity to Ireland.
St Patrick was born in the second half of the 4th Century possibly in Wales (location is unknown). When he was 16, he was kidnapped by Irish Pirates and taken to Ireland to be a slave. He worked there for about 6 years and it was there that he became quite religious. He believed his lack of faith was the reason he was kidnapped. He later stowed away on a boat to escape back home to his family, but had a dream of returning to Ireland one day as a priest. He did just that and bridged the gap between pagans and Christians with the help of a shamrock to explain the trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Ghost – separate elements of one entity) and creating the Celtic Cross – Pagans had a stone with a circle carved in it (symbolizing the sun and moon). He carved a cross through the stone in order to bless the stone. It is said that he was willing to adapt pagan practices and symbols to Christian beliefs to help ease the transition from pagan to Christian.
Probably one of the most famous stories – aside from the shamrock – is the legend that he drove all the snakes of Ireland into the sea where they drowned. And to this day, Ireland is snake-free. St Patrick died on March 17, 461 and that date has been honoured ever since.
We heard many of these stories when we were travelling around Ireland and each story and legend was more fascinating than the last.
Fast forward to 1973 and another saint was born. My husband. Not only is his heritage Irish, but he was born on an Irish holiday. Prior to his birth, his dad was telling others that he would be born on St Patrick’s Day and sure enough, he was. From that day on, his Dad would make sure Sean was celebrated – shamrock ties, clover decals stuck on their windows, Irish music playing all day, and green silly leprechaun hats worn in honor of his birthday.
Today, I continue that tradition. We are often away on holiday during his birthday since it often lands on March Break, but even while away, I have managed to decorate for him or surprise him with a special dinner.
My husband is the first to go out of his way to make others feel special. He has come up so with many elaborate celebrations and surprises for myself or our children (see a previous blog – Birthday in Toronto – to read how he made my day special without even being with me), that spoiling him on his day is an honour.
Top 10 Reasons of Why I Love and Honour My Husband:
- His drive for success
- His spontaneity
- His humour
- His love for his family
- He is so…. handsome
- His musical talent
- His faith
- He is so handy
- His love of adventure with me
- He chose me to spend the rest of his life with
- He is incredibly smart
- He is an amazing encourager
- His ability to dream
- He can inspire anyone
- His smile
As you can see…. My list keeps on going. I don’t just have 10 reasons I love and honour my husband…. The list is unending.
So, Happy Birthday my love (and Happy St Patrick’s Day to the rest of you). I hope your day continues to be as special and loved as you are to me.
