By Peg Prendeville

The promise of a few fine days has got the farmers busy cutting hay and silage. There is great pleasure in working in fine weather so hopefully a lot of work will get done.

Now that some of the Covid restrictions are being lifted there is an air of celebration growing in the country. The Knockdown Arms is preparing for opening in July. It will be strange and nice to see cars parked in front of it again.

I was delighted to hear that Taylors shop in Loughill has re-opened selling all kinds of goodies, drinks and ice cream. This will prove very welcome and popular for all families who continue to use the playground nearby. New life and new business is always exciting. Best of luck to the Bowering family on this new venture.

“The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men gang aft agley,

An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain, for promis’d joy!”

These lines come from a poem “To a Mouse” by Robert Burns. I must have learned this at school as I often quote the lines when my plans do not work out. Last week was one such example. It was mine and Jim’s 44^th wedding anniversary last Friday and I had made plans to visit him in the hospital in Dunlaoire and the staff were going to make it a “special visit.” BUT, instead, Jim ended up in St Vincent’s hospital with ‘a pneumonia’ and I got a horrible head cold so that cancelled out any hope of seeing each other. Thankfully he is recovering and I too am fine so I’m hoping that a visit can be arranged for this coming weekend. It is only since Jim got his knockout that I see the damage Covid has caused apart altogether from loss of life for some people. Patients in hospital are very lucky to get any visit from family as many don’t but because Jim still has no speech he and I are “lucky” to get one visit a week. It must make it very hard for patients waiting every week or longer to see a familiar face come through the door. We are living through a challenge which nobody could have foreseen.