Leaving Ireland
As we prepared to leave Ireland and return to the United States, I was still processing our amazing trip. Through friends, East Coast met West Coast and we shared a castle for a week. How fun it was to meet and make new friends, cook together every evening, tour small towns, eat in fabulous little nooks each day, exercise each morning and evening together, (dark didn't come until 10:00pm or later), play Bridge, catch up on reading, visit beautiful gardens, check out restored castle residences of the "very rich" AND do all of this with special friends. Steve and I are so lucky.
Goodbye Ireland, I am totally in love with your beautiful country.
P.S. All of that luggage did fit in that medium sized car!!
A Feast For The Eyes
When we arrived in Ireland toward the end of May, I had no idea there would be so many gardens with the first blooms of Spring everywhere. Wisteria, lilacs, iris, lilies, roses and much more. When I am in a garden, I feel especially close to God. Manicured arbors, fragrant smells from roses and flowering trees, birds singing melodious songs...everywhere is such peace. Why can't we have more of this peace in our lives everyday? Ireland is so beautiful.
Pubs
One of the women in our group, Julie, is a violinist who played many years for Andy Williams. She wanted to play in a Pub while we were in Ireland. The local people in the photo above have been playing together every Wednesday night for 25 years. Anyone who wants to join in and play with the group can. You just bring your instrument and pull up your chair. There is no music and everyone is improvising based on just 3 chord progressions. Our whole gang headed to the pub, on Wednesday to support Julie. As a classical violinist she needed to see what and how the locals were playing.
After about an hour Julie jumped right in and began playing. Because she is so-o-o-o beautiful, all the Pub guys couldn't keep their eyes off of her. No, she is not in the above photo.
What fun we had listening and meeting the locals. Not a tourist was in sight because this was a tiny town. No food, just booze is served in Pubs. Maybe I should suggests pretzels and peanuts next visit!
What makes a U.S. traveler the “Ugly American?”
Our castle is located just outside Thurles, a small farm town. In driving to Thurles, one sees beautiful farm fields fenced in by stone walls and hedges. These different shades of green, all squared off with sheep, cows and horses, gives me such a relaxed sense of calm. Lots of tourist are in the large cities (Shannon, Dublin, etc.) but we see mostly locals in these small towns.
Today we visited a totally refurbished fabulous castle, owed by the Butlers. As we started our unguided tour, 2 American couples were in front of us. There were signs posted everywhere that said "no pictures allowed in the castle." One of the men in this group began taking pictures in each room. People who live in Ireland are so kind and very polite, at least those that I met, but suddenly the castle docent wasn't so gentle in her verbage, but still very polite. "Sir, you have taken 3 pictures so far in the castle. One more and you will be escorted out of the property." The man mumbled some kind of feeble excuse and put his camera away.
We dropped back to look at another room and I heard the docent say, "You always have to watch those Americans. They love to see how far they can bend the rules."
I felt a tinge of sadness. Every American who travels is an ambassador of our country. Our image as "The Ugly American" is universal and that is because of incidenses just like this one.
Changing Lives..
We have had so many graduating classes over the years and during our 5 days working closely together, new friendships are cemented. But friendships are like flowers; they constantly need fertilizer. So, here at The American School of Protocol, I began a new procedure several months ago.
I decided that I would select one class of graduates each week and personally call each one to touch base. How exciting these last two months have been with wonderful stories from so many graduates.
One is actively working with children on an Indian Reservation, another with autistic children, another in a drug lock-down facility, an etiquette cruise ship director, a children’s dress shop owner who teaches etiquette classes in her store, an attorney who donates time to work with wards of the state, a dozen or more graduates who teach on college campuses, several graduates who write for publications online and in print, and the list goes on and on.
I heard stories about graduates who have experienced life changes such as births, divorce and deaths and are currently not able to teach. There were also graduates who have been greatly affected by the economy in their areas. Regardless of the reason, almost all stated that their training helped them focus on opportunities that improved their visions for the future. To all these remarkable graduates I say ‘ hang tight’. You remain in my heart and as you know, we are always here to help and to counsel. That’s what we do!
What a fabulous difference our graduates are making in their communities whether they are teaching or not. Our school is about changing lives and what a wonderful feeling and honor it is to hear these life changing stories from them.
Do drop by our Facebook Fan page to meet a few of them or perhaps you are ready to change your own life. Our next 5 Day Children’s Certification training is May 2-6, 2010 in Atlanta. We would love to have you join us!
and that’s What Makes Momma Happy!
The American School of Protocol
...where training is our passion
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Julie Roberts talks about working with the children at TASP
Having the children participate with us during training was just delightful! Being hands-on with them during all the lessons not only taught the children the correct way to do things, it also helped us practice what we learned by reinforcing them. Seeing a diverse group of children learn social skills that will set them up for success was truly inspiring!
Thank You!
Julie Roberts, Certified Graduate February 2010
The American School of Protocol
...where training is our passion
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Meet Carla Thompson, graduate of TASP
The format of the training manual at The American School of Protocol is so complete and concise that it’s like reading a roadmap! As an educator, I understand the importance of relaying information that is clear and well defined. Peggy has accomplished this goal with diagrams and language that express the art of etiquette consultation.
Thank You!
Carla Thompson, Certified Graduate February 2010
The American School of Protocol
...where training is our passion
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Rules are Rules…or are they?
Because I made a promise to my daughter that I would NOT preach in my blog, I thought I would share with you some slight bends of the rules that I use at my house. They are still well within ‘proper’ guidelines though they do not follow the rules to the letter. Here we go…
When I have people come to our home for dinner, if I am serving a salad at the same time as the main course, I only put a dinner fork on the left side, not a dinner and salad fork. I do this because the salad fork can so easily fall off the salad plate during dinner, or when you remove the plates to prepare for dessert. If I am serving the salad before the main course, then I will set the table with a salad fork, a dinner fork and two knives. That allows our guests to use a salad fork and a salad knife with that course. Then for the main course, the dinner fork and knife will be used.
In this instance, the one rule I do not bend is that I always use the appropriate utensils. Every fork set from left to right is married to a knife.
Do you ever bend the rules? Do tell!
...and we’ll see if that Makes Momma Happy!
The American School of Protocol
...where training is our passion
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WELCOME!
The American School of Protocol would like to welcome you to "Manners Make Momma Happy!" Join us here as we discuss life skills, including etiquette and manners and how they contribute to success in life
... and that Makes Momma Happy!