About the Town

Today Carole and I spent the day exploring Dublin. The City Tour bus took us from place to place. We could hop off at any stop and hop on another when we had seen what we wanted. I love walking the sidewalks of busy cities because you can see all kinds of people. I saw young girls traveling in 2s and 3s who were laughing and conversing while they strolled along. Young men with their earphones and coffee strode purposefully with their shoulder bags traveling alongside. Middle aged couples such as Carole and I looked very responsible.  We all had our coats on and our shoes reflected an age where comfort and support overrode style for a day of walking. Young families pushed baby carriages boldly through the crowd; saying "Excuse me" at times and at other times, using the carriage to "accidentally" bump the ankle of the person blocking their way. I say old people. It looked as though they were there for a specific purpose and then they would be going home. Their days of nonchalantly looking in store windows were over some time ago.

My favorite thing to do is to sit in a coffee shop, get a seat by the window when possible and watch the people go by. I try to imagine their story. Are they happy or sad? Are they making a life, or has a life been forced upon them? Most importantly, do they know Christ? Is their salvation secure?

At the end of the day we visited Kilmainham Prison. Although the prison has been closed since the 1920's it stands as a testament to how cruelly we can treat one another when our desire to have our way or to show power over someone else overrides our call to love one another. The stories the docent told were sad. And it broke my heart to think that supposedly civilized people can subject other people to such cruelty just because of a difference of political affiliation or religious belief. Yet this cruelty exists in the full gamut of forms even today. We as Christians have to do what we can every time to prevent such cruelty. Jesus told us that the most important commandment is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. Then he added something he said was just as important. He said for us to love our neighbor as ourself. If we could follow that one rule, No other laws would be necessary.