Crossing the Pond - THEN

Donald had left several weeks earlier for Scotland. Emanuel Gorres, Tony Watson, David Levite and myself were headed for Dublin, Ireland all leaving on the same day. Donald would be coming over to Ireland as we and the Scots contingent all emerged on Portrush.

As it turned out Tony and I were on the same flight from BWI to New York. As we prepared to take off I started a conversation with a fellow passenger next to me. As I explained what we doing. The passenger in front of me turned her head to hear the conversation.

She exclaimed how exciting! I'm Roman Catholic and I know about St. Columba. (Most Americans don't.) She said her neighbor was part of senior management of the Discovery Channel and she would tell him to send a crew to cover our adventure. (Never saw them, but many UK correspondents did.

After landing in New York in disembarking from the plane, the female passenger stuck out her hand to shake mine and said, Bless you, Ern Malcolm! I felt something in my palm which turned out to be a tightly folded fifty dollar bill!

I believe Tony and David were on the same flight, Emmanuel would arrive before us. The flight to Ireland was uneventful and as we three picked up our luggage, Emmanel showed up.

We took a bus to the train station and there we encountered our first difficulty with a divided Ireland. We didn't see on the train schedule boards any trains that would take us to Portrush. We asked the ticket agent and he just shook his head and looked away. Two more agents gave the same response of can't help you.

We were really perplexed. Then another traveler came up to us and said he overhead our conversations with the ticket agents. He told us to take the #XX train that will go to Belfast, NORTHERN Ireland and there you can get a train to Portrush. On the schedule board that train showed no stops in Northern Ireland. He followed his advice and got to Belfast.

Belfast City Hall

Grandfather Mountain Highland Games - NOW

Last weekend, I was in Linville, NC for the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games. It was a wonderful time! I have posted photographs of the weekend here.

I first attended the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games in 2005. Chief Robin Malcolm was to be the honored there. Donald and Lise' were going. How could I not go. I had meet the Chief in 2003 on the Voyage of St. Columba. It was to be really big! I made my reservations as a camper.

I was also interested to meet Don Malcolm. Don was President at the time. I appreciated his making available to the Clan a cotton Malcolm tartan. I had purchased several yards which I wore as the feilidh mhor or Great Kilt. I had been married wearing it!

I haven't been able to locate my photos of the 2005 games, but here is the link to the Clan MacCallum/Malcolm Society website with photos of the event. I do have this one of Donald and I with the Chief. When the Chief saw me, he remembered me from the 2003 visit and referred to as the oarsman. What a compliment! My fellow crew members may chuckle as I was probably the one more likely to be out of sync in rowing.

I would like to jump ahead in my recounting the Voyage of St. Columba. Here is the link to photographs of a side trip to Duntrune Castle the seat of Clan Chief Robin Malcolm. Chief Robin was expecting us to land in Crinan and was preparing to entertain the crew. But a storm had placed us two days ahead of schedule. Chief Robin had other entertaining to do when we arrived.

Our skipper Robin knew we must press on to Iona. As we pulled out of Crinan, I could see Duntrune Castle and was so disappointed that I would not meet the Chief. We arrived at our next stop Easdale Island. Our lorry support driver, Roddy Lightbody arrived and he and Donald told me to get into the truck. We were off taking the back roads heading for Duntrune to drop in on the Chief.

Nearly two hours later we entered the gate of Duntrune. Opening the great door to the turret, Donald called out, CHIEF ROBIN! Aye, came the reply, come on up. We entered and went up the spiral stone stair way like so many movies I had seen of castles with knights fighting their way to the top.

At the top we found the Chief in a huge great room. Donald introduced us as this was his third meeting with the Chief. Chief Robin expressed his disappointment the crew could not be there as he made all the provisions to feed us royally. Chief Robin asked if we like a beer and cheeky me replied, "a wee dram would go down better, Chief!" Our hospitable host readily obliged.

After time of getting to know one another, the Chief offered to fill our glasses which suited the parched voyagers. He said we are moving up to the better quality whiskey. We had passed the test!

Chief Robin told us about his family and answered our many questions about the Clan. The Chief of course knew his long lineage and told us of family members who had done well in the USA. I told the Chief that my father had told me as a young man, not to get interested in genealogy as he wanted me to know I came from a long line of thieves and drunks!

The Chief roared with laughter and slapped his thigh and said, "Ernest, be proud of that, as we Scots of nothing but thieves and drunks! That's how my family gained our lands and wealth. He showed us the narrow slits in the castle walls that his forefathers had placed thier arrows/muskets to keep their wealth from other thieving Scots!

As we departed, Chief Robin gave us each a wee bottle of Scotch to wash the dust out of our mouth with a return to Easdale. What a trip!

Present Past Interconnections - NOW

It's 0545 as I begin drafting this post. The one day, I have to sleep in, my mind is a whirl of past memories and present experiences. I sit at my desk in my sportkilt, Clan An Drumma t-shirt, with a steaming cup of Earl Grey tea in my recently acquired 'delft' china Grandfather Mountain Highland Games cup and with traditional Celtic music from AccuRadio streaming from the Internet. Who wants to sleep in!

It has been over a month since beginning this blog. I feel badly, that this will be my second post. I am overwhelmed in the enormity of the project, I've begun. My desk is covered with packets of photos and items I picked up on our trips. Time is limited, as I work two jobs (part-time in a Wal-Mart and manage a home owners association). My real vocation as a minister of the Gospel seems at times not given first place. Confession is good for the soul.

Last night, I renewed a friendship; Peter Mcleod had come to Virginia! David Levite of Alexandria, VA (part of the American contingent of the Colmcille crew) had emailed that Peter of Skye was coming stateside for a college seminar in Ohio. I offered to spring for dinner for us all to meet.

David offered to meet half way from Alexandria and Spotsylvania, my home. It was only fitting to select the Macaroni Grill in Woodbridge to be the place. It was here in the winter of 2003 that the American contingent first met together with Donald to discuss our upcoming voyage.

I remember Donald sharing his faith with our server who happened to be of the Jewish faith. Our server last night, introduced himself, Gershom. Peter quickly noted his name as the first son of Moses and began a Bible lesson on Moses.

On the Comcille voyage, I overheard a couple of times fatherly advice Donald would share with Peter, the youngest member on our crew. Peter seemed to be searching for his place in life. What I now realize Peter is a genius (like an Edison or Einstein) who functions on an intellectual level beyond most of us.

Peter has a website on his theory of the cosmic forces in creating Noah's flood and posted a paper on it. A college professor of a Christian college in Ohio had read Peter's website and offered him a all expenses paid trip to their seminar on creation theory! And David was serving Peter in being his companion in taking him there. What a friend!

The photo here Peter gave me last evening. He and David before dinner, had visited the town of Occoquan seeing a friend of David's who owned a curio shop. There Peter acquired this photograph entitled 'Monks in a Boat' by Jerr ODauritzen of Kerry, Ireland. It speaks to me of us three with Donald in the hand of God.