We are planning a trip to Ireland so I looked on Amazon for some videos and found the story of President Barack Obama finding his Irish roots. In 2007, when then Sen. Obama was running for president, people in Moneygall looked and found that his 6th great grandfather was from their village. One man named Henry started a campaign himself, this one to support Obama and to invite him to visit and learn about his ancestry.
Henry, the parish priest (who’d done the genealogy), and a musical trio who’d written the song ‘There’s no one as Irish as Barack Obama’ were invited to the inaugural festivities by an Irish American group. Though they didn’t meet him, they were thrilled to be part of history.
Still they persisted, and in 2011, the president and first lady visited Moneygall. ‘Twas a thrill for all. Both looked genuine in their enthusiasm.
I couldn’t help but contrast the Obamas with the disaster we have in the White House today. Footage from election night 2008 and the inauguration took me back to a day when we had hope and price. In 2017, I have little hope.
Happy Trails. blog 