Often, we’ll go through life, looking and listening with our own blinders on. Which for some is a comfortable feeling for it means they never have to face their fears and test them rationally. They can be like the finest horses - horses that have been fitted with “blinders” so they are not able to have much peripheral vision and can be controlled by the rider without worry of the fear of the horse having irrational and silly fears from something it sees in its peripheral vision.

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This true story would likely be even more humorous if I could relate it to you in a Northern Irish accent. And it’s motivated by a part of a review of a book entitled “Apart From The Crowd.”

In the review by Jon, he writes,

“The dialogue is effective, I could just imagine those soft Irish accents and the quick wittedness of the characters.”

Having lived in Canada for many years, I’ve lost my Irish accent (actually, there are about as many “accents” in Ireland as there are places and towns - and I’m told mine, when it does come forth, is very much County Antrimish which is much different than Belfast, or Dublin, or Cork, or any other place).

Anyhow, years ago, about 1970, my mom and I were enjoying a wee holiday and had decided to tour through Dongeal, Ireland. My Granda and my mom had decided on a different route back from the route we had taken in order to enjoy the beautiful scenery of Donegal, and we were armed with the best maps money could buy at the time.

And we continued driving along what we thought (and it turned out was indeed) a major road according to the map we had. Except in some parts of Ireland - major roads can be no more than roads where hardly two cars can pass going in the opposite direction.

We traveled on wondering if we had made a wrong turn somewhere, when suddenly, we saw an elderly couple walking along the side of the road. My mom and granda decided to stop the car and ask the couple for some help to assure we were on the right road.

Now whether it is quick wittedness or perhaps a misunderstanding or meanings between English and Gaelic, I don’t know. But my mom stopped the car and approached the couple walking down the road in what seemed like the middle of no where and asked,

“Hullo there! Would you tell me where I am?”

The old Donegal man looked at my mom, then looked at his wife. He then scratched his head. He looked again at my mom and with all seriousness said,

“Och Missus, you’re standing right there. That’s where you are. You’re right there in front of me! You really are!”

Sometimes we need to keep in mind that what we are thinking and what is obvious to us, may not be exactly the same as the person we’re trying to communicate with. And indeed, the story of asking the man from Donegal about where we were might seem humourous if you “get it,” but it might also be very serious, if you’re not open to realizing that words might have different meanings depending on who you are speaking with.

Some years later, I visited Donegal with my father. We were running low on fuel for the car, and passed a few “Petrol” stations (Gas stations in America, “Petrol Station” in the U.K.) that were closed.

We decided to stop in a wee shop in Donegal City that sold ice cream, for it was a warm day and my father asked the proprietor, “Would you tell me where I can get some petrol for my car?”

The response from the proprietor, “For goodness sake, any place they sell it, don’t you think?”

We always need to check our own premises and as well, realize that people we are communicating with might not have the same ideas exactly that we are trying to communicate, for many different reasons. Expecting or assuming that others know exactly what we mean when we are communicating can be very dangerous - just because we think it is obvious that you are where you are, or that you can get gas or petrol from any place they sell it, doesn’t mean that is what was originally meant.

Check your own premises about your own beliefs.. and be willing to check and try to understand the premises of others as well. Perhaps when they communicate something to you, it’s not exactly the same meaning at all as your first understanding or belief of it.

And indeed.. there is also a truism in.. “where am I right now?” “Och, you’re standing right there, so you are!”

As an aside, if you ever get a chance to visit Ireland .. and can do it without some tour guided thing.. and can spend some time with people of Belfast, Dublin, Donegal, Cork, Raflin Island, Londonderry.. and so many other places, do it.

Plan it today. i’m all for progress everywhere, but I can tell you it was quite a shock to me to visit Lisburn, Antrim, Belfast, and even the thatched cottage my grandfather lived in just 30 years ago, visiting it all again last year .. all now.. so different, in some ways better.. but at the same time in some ways have lost something.

If you ever want to know whee you are, just ask a Donegal man.. and he’ll tell you exactly where you are: “You’re right there, standing right in front of me.. no worries.. you really are where you think you are and where I see you are at.”

But ask him for directions to climb a mountain.. and take heed. If you really want to climb the mountain.. then you will.

If that’s what you really want to do.

What is it that you really want to do?

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