Last Saturday I went to the Carrick Corn Festival at Phillips Park, across the street from the high school where I’d just started my new position (digital photography teacher)  the day before. Our principal had invited us to attend and get to know the community plus it was a chance to see the Marching Band perform and shoot some photos of the event. There were Irish Step Dancers and Bhutanese Dancers and I’ve quite a few views of the corn being shucked and boiled, dripping in butter but this is the photo of the day.

At one of the booths, this man was writing people’s names and telling their meaning.  I asked if I could photograph his dog (Shammy) who was by his side with a bowl of water on the grass.  Sean told me that I should have seen her at the St. Patrick’s Day parade and he shared some snaps of her in her outfit.   Here he’s picked her up for another pose.  Even though I was short on cash, this generous gentleman wrote the meaning of my name Ruth (a friend to all)  on the back of a prayer card, using a calligraphy pen in neat writing.

Not just any prayer card but the patron saint of photographers.

He’d asked me if I knew who the patron saint of photographers was and I ‘d no idea.

He told me the story of St. Veronica and her capturing the image of Jesus’ face in the cloth she offered to him.

Receiving this unexpected gift felt like a special blessing at the start of of the new school year. Thank you Sean.