ARRIVING AT MY FIRST ANNIVERSARY AFTER KIDNEY TRANSPLANT; ARRIVING IN IRELAND 2010 WITH MONS EJK.........

Msgr. Kavanagh and I arrived in Dublin, Ireland at 10.10 am this morning and were met by his niece Rosemary´s husband, Gerhard, who drove us from Dublin Airport to Portlaise, approximately the halfway point between our arrival point and the Kavanaghs hometown of Urlingford, CountybKilkeny.  In Portlaise, Msgr´s nephew, J.J., was there to meet us and drive us on to his home.  There awaiting us were J.J.´s wife Liz, and their 8 children, with whom we visited and had tea with, before Liz drove me into Kilkenny City, 18 miles away and to Father Oliver Maher and St. Mary´s Cathedral, where Oliver has been the ADM, the past ten years.  Once settled in my quarters in the Cathedral, we went across the street to Market Cross, to grocery shop, and then I chillaxed until our 8.40 pm dinner reservation at the ¨Italian Connection¨ restaurant, where Oliver and I were joined for dinner by Reverend Father Doctor Dermot Ryan, S.T.D., Ossory Diocesan Director of Adult Faith Formation, Chaplain of St. Kieran´s College, as well as to the Special Needs Holy Spirit School and a Lecturer in Theology at Carlow College, in the neighboring county next door.  After dinner, we recessed to John Cleere´s Pub across the street, where Powers, Maher, and Ryan, were joined by the the Parish Priest of St. Canice´s Parish in Kilkenny, Reverend Father Jim Murphy, for a chat and a few pints.  My pints consisting of good ol´fashioned Ginger Ale !!!!!!!!!!  All in all, a smooth journey over, and a delightful first day being back in the Emerald Isle.  For me, three years since my last visit, full of eagerness to see all, ¨the usual suspects¨, plus many more familiar and newly discovered people.  Tomorrow brings a mid morning departure for Oliver and me, back to the airport for the sidetrip he has planned for us this year, a 5 day stay in Marbella, Spain, visiting his sister Irene and brother Frank, and their two sons, Adam and Noah.  We will be joined by Oliver´s oldest brother, Ken, who is traveling from County Roscommon in Ireland, to join us in the Spanish sun. And to think- it was just one year ago today that my living donor, Victor Herrera, and the Mayo Clinic Arizona Transplant Team, led by my surgeon, Dr. Moss, made it possible for me to resume a near normal life.   More Soon, as this Irish Spanish Adventure 2010, unfolds..........Slainte !!!!!!!!!!,   Fr.  Troy