Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

"St. Patrick's Day is an enchanted time - a day to begin transforming winter's dreams into summer's magic." - Adrienne Cook

"When after the Winter alarmin',
The Spring steps in so charmin',
So fresh and arch
In the middle of March,
Wid her hand St. Patrick's arm on..."
- Alfred Percival Graves

Everything is coming up green around me. Even breakfast has a greener hue!

So far today I've eaten pancakes colored with green food coloring, donned green clothing and my Claddagh pendant necklace and green jeweled hair tie. TCM today is having a marathon of older Irish films and I watched My Wild Irish Rose with my mom and sister. Currently I am watching a Celtic Woman concert and posting about Irish things. Later my family and I will have corned beef and cabbage dinner, and we're looking up desert recipes (it's tricky because our oven broke down last night!). It's a perfect Spring day outside, the sun is bright and the air is fairly warm, a good reminder and Spring officially starts on Saturday! :)

Even my computer has a St Paddy's Day makeover by donning green wallpaper that makes Henry Tilney look a bit like a leprechaun! You can find this and other Jane Austen adaptation wallpapers at the Jane Austen Fan Club.
This made me reflect on whether Jane Austen had written about Ireland or included Irish characters in her stories. Besides Miss Austen's own Irish suitor I indeed found a few mentioned in some of her books!


Irish actor Ciaran Hinds portrays Captain Frederick Wentworth

The funnest is this quote about Captain Wentworth from Persuasion:
"A very fine young man indeed!" said Lady Dalrymple. "More air than one often sees in Bath. Irish, I dare say."
High praise from Lady Dalrymple who was part of Anne's "family connections among the nobility of England and Ireland..."!

Another Irishman is the much talked about but never seen Mr. Dixon in Emma. Jane Fairfax seemed to have a special liking for Ireland, according to Miss Bates "she heard everything he might be telling Miss Campbell about his own home in Ireland...Jane was quite longing to go to Ireland, from his account of things." Ireland also seemed to be a special note between Jane Fairfax and Frank Churchill who noted of a music book he bought with the pianoforte: "And here are a new set of Irish melodies....True affection only could have prompted it."

When Irish eyes are smiling,
'Tis like a morn in spring.
With a lilt of Irish laughter
You can hear the angels sing.
~Author Unknown

I pray your day is filled with lovely bits of fun like these.

Happy St Patrick's Day everyone!

God Bless,

Miss Laurie :)