Laurie Heath Studio: Wonderfully Made

We left Dublin on Wednesday to drive toward the west coast of Ireland, with a stop in Cashel to see the Rock of Cashel. The Rock is just that -- a huge rocky outcropping that provided a great spot to build a fortress and later a grand cathedral. Legend has it that St. Patrick once baptized the chieftain (king) here, accidently stabbing the new believer in the foot with his sacred cane. The chieftain accepted this in silence, assuming it was part of the required ritual of becoming a Christian.

The Rock is still a beautiful place although it lies in ruins today:

A cemetery outside the cathedral contains gravesites from several centuries.

From her hilltop vantage point, the Blessed Mary watches over both the Rock and the city of Cashel.

Two cherubs took their turn watching over the city as well.

Life is profuse throughout Ireland, sprouting even from rock.

Time for a photo-op:

Finally we said goodbye to the Rock ...

... and headed into the town of Cashel.

We spent the night at the Cashel Lodge, which is "literally, with no poetic license whatsoever, the nearest building around the far side of the Rock." It's also just across the barely-two-lane-road from 13th century Hore Abbey, where Curtis (and our rental car) found his first curb. This was our view from the Lodge's front parking lot. We walked over and had the place entirely to ourselves.

Well, we did have to share it with a few cows.

As we turned back to face the Lodge, we admired the Rock in the background.

Now to explore the Abbey:

Tyler is serving as our videographer on the trip.

And Maggie is our ... monkey?

A few last looks at this peaceful place:

Curtis saw this spot and gathered us for a shot:

Sorry not to be more chatty -- we're enjoying some terrific music in a pub tonight while borrowing their wi-fi and it's hard to put words together. Hope all is well back in Texas!