Out of Time and Place

Bear with me while I wax poetic. I know, I know. Not my usual style. Still, we’re all friends, so humor me for a moment. Have you ever felt such a strong sense of déjà vu that you wondered how you could possibly remember something you never actually experienced? I get this feeling a lot. It’s a strange sort of homesickness for a place I’ve never been, a longing for somewhere I’ve never called home, in a time I’ve never known. Ireland. There’s just something about the place that feels familiar to me, like I belong there somehow. And it’s not just a matter of wanting to escape to rolling green pastures … although that’s definitely a point in its favor. I can’t explain it, and believe me, I’ve tried. So where does this feeling come from? I know there’s some Irish ancestry in my family, so maybe that has something to do with it. Maybe there’s a connection to Ireland that goes back further than I realize. My family is from West Virginia, which attracted Irish immigrants by the thousands.…