The Importance of St Patrick's Day

St Patrick's Day was a highly valued holiday in my childhood home. This was not simply because of the Irish bloodline of my mother, Joe Anne Lucretia Donahue. There was an intensity behind it due to the backdrop of my grandfather, Joseph Donahue, having died in a mining accident when my mother was five-years-old. This tragedy was in the background of our lives and was behind many of my mother's confusing emotional reactions. The effects of this tragedy were passed down to me and my siblings, molding us in ways we didn't realize.

But when St Patrick's Day came around, so did the pride of being Irish. The Donahue's originally came from County Meathe, Ireland. My mother's beliefs in what it meant to be Irish came through: "tough scrapper," "loud and rowdy," "quick with a joke,""loyal to friends and family," "love of crowds and fun." My mother embodied this in how she interacted daily with friends and acquaintances. Over the years, the descriptors would be repeated, "Your mother is such a card!" "Your mother cracks me up!""Your mother had us going!" "Your mother was the life of the party!" My mother was an extrovert whose humor usually involved a tease or razzing of someone. She loved a good story. She would tell them and encouraged her children to entertain her with stories as well. Within this fun-loving extrovert, however, there was sadness and discontent. At home behind the scenes, she would brood with her cigarettes and coffee. On weekends, she would sleep until noon, avoiding life's struggle for long hours. My mother passed away in March of 2009. I feel a sadness on St Patrick's Day and a lack of people around me who understand the meaning in it, my family's meaning. But my children have come to expect my peppermint patty brownies on this day, bringing the cheer of all things Irish and the wearin o'the green.