Oh, To Be In Ireland

Of course Robert Browning's first line in Home-thoughts from Abroad is "Oh, to be in England", but after talking to a cousin from Ireland this past Monday and hearing that wonderful Irish accent, my mind has been on Ireland all week.
His name is John Lynam and he showed up on my brother's doorstep Monday morning. He had been in Lenox talking to distant cousins there and they directed him to my brother in Corning. Then Ron called me so I could talk to John, too. How thrilled I am to have a connection to a cousin still living in Ireland! His great-great-grandfather and my great-great-grandfather were brothers. His stayed in Ireland, mine came to America. I asked John if he had family history back beyond our gr-gr-grandfathers and he does. I anticipate e-mails of information going back and forth soon.

One of the first pictures I will send cousin John is this one of my great-great-grandparents, William and Catherine and their six living children taken sometime in the early 1900's. (We know it was after 1898 which is when Grandpa William died because his photo was pasted over someone who stood in for him. Which also explains why he looks younger than his wife.)

Also this one of my great-grandparents, Barney and Nancy and their four children.

At some point I'll tell him about the Lynam family reunion I organized in 1990 and send him some of the photos I took that day.

Perhaps I'll even include a photo of myself taken when I was in Ireland in 1994:

And, if by chance he invites us to visit him in Ireland.....well, my passport is up-to-date and I would most definitely love to be in Ireland again!