Trip to Glendalough

On Saturday November 8^th, a group of confirmation candidates went to Glendalough for a pilgrimage walk and a hike. Thanks to so many parents to come with them on the day. Without them, it would have been a different story!

You will enjoy reading their stories. I can tell you that this is a great bunch of kids!! They look out for each other, they don’t fight, they have fun and can have a good conversation. They have an eye for nature and a feel for symbolism.They certainly got into the Spirit of the day!

Well done to our journalists! I could have put up more stories: from Kate D., Hazel O’D.,  Michael McC. (who mentioned the well deserved and desparately needed nice hot bath afterwards!!), Katie M., Eny S., Ciaran H., Cian H., Emma G., Kate O’D. and one anonymous writer.

Ps “the graveyard”… that is actual the monastic site. I must not have explained that properly…. No, I did, but they were just fascinated with the age of the tombstones!!

Jenny

My trip to Glendalough

My trip started when we all gathered at the church. We got on the bus and we waited for a while then we finally got to Glendalough. We jumped out. We went over to a big pile of muck and started to shout. We climbed Glendalough mountain.

We started of by playing games and we were all (each group) given a task to do. One of the tasks was to estimate how many steps from one place to another. The people in my group were me, Sinead, Kate, Hazel, Georgina, Eny, Rebecca, Jack, Oran and Andrew in my class. Rebecca had the closest estimate. Then we did a monk movement. After that we did this walk. While we were walking we had to listen to the sounds around us. Finally we started our hike. We wen to St Kevin’s well. We blessed in between our eyes with the water from the well. We picked different things of the ground and tied them to a tree. It was supposed to be like a candle and that it would not last forever. We had to put paint on our forehead or hand and say a word like “Confidence” or “ Courage” as we walked through a passage. We were at a grave yard and went to an old church. Then we went with a partner to a grave stone and made a wish. Then we walked to a lake and threw a stone in and blessed ourselves for someone sick or who needs a prayer. We walked on and me and other people climbed up a hill to a water fall. We were all slipping and then my friend fell half way down. We were all laughing. Then we finally got to have our lunch but before we could eat we had to do different things. My group had to set the tables, another group had to say the prayer and the third group had to do a song. After that we got to eat! After that we walked some more and came to another lake and we had to collect different things like a feather, something white, something beautiful and a clover. Then we got a really good bit up the mountain so we walked back down to the bus . we all bought hot chocolate to warm us up. We were all so wet because it was raining. We all relaxed on our way home from a great day.

Sarah K.

Our Trip to Glendalough.

The day started off for me with the usual mad rush to get there on time! Having to check everything five and six times. When I got there, there were only a few people standing at the church gate. Slowly but surely more and more people arrived. And we began to gather onto the bus.

Everyone was having their own little chats but one thing that caught everyone’s eye druing the bus journey was the beautiful scenery.

As soon as we arrived in Glendalough it was clear to everyone that Glendalough was a place of true peace and tranquility.

We took some photos and then moved on to prepare for the challenges ahead of us. We started off with some games. Then moved on to the labyrinth – what stuck me about this was that in life we all lose our way sometimes but there’s always a way back. We tried to be aware of all the beauty surrounding us: sights and sounds. Next we made our way to St Kevin’s well where we sought the gift of the third eye, wisdom and understanding. We blessed ourselves with the water from the well. Afterwards we tied rushes around the branches of a large tree to leave as sign that we had been to this sacred place. Some of us took a daring track up a mountain where we came across two waterfalls.

We walked through a peaceful graveyard where we joined hands around a stone and made a wish. Before we entered, there were tow gates where we gave ourselves another name and painted green paint on our hands as a mark of entering this sacred place.  

Afterwards when we had finished our lunch we took another track up a different mountain. We threw stones into the lake as a symbol of our prayer for someone ill. On the way we did a treasure hunt. Although the weather took a turn for the worse (it started to pour rain!!) nobody seemed to mind. They did not let it ruin their day. We headed back for the bus.

It was a good day if I do say so myself. Everybody seemed to have enjoyed themselves (even if they did get their hair wet!)

It gave us a lot of time to think about what we wanted to make of our lives and what was important to us.

 Ellen W.

Glendalough Hike

Me and my friends went for a hike in Glendalough on Saturday for our confirmation. We met up at the church and got on the bus. On the way I spoke to my friends that were sitting near me.

Everyone was singing songs and having fun. When we got there, the parents who were helping took lots of pictures of us. Before we started our hike, we had a snack and played some games.

Then we went to Saint Kevin’s well and put the water on our third eye for clarity. We all left a reed each at the well. We tied them to a tree and then started our hike.

Before we went to the well, we walked around a swirly labyrinth. The shape of the Labyrinth represented how our lives have many twists and turns.

When we came to the entrance gate to Glendalough we had to choose a name that would remind people of us. Our first stop was the biggest church in Glendalough. Several dead people were buried there. Our next stop was a high round tower. It had no doors, so you would need a ladder to enter it by one of its windows. Beside it were several gravestones. We got to hug a massive one in the shape of a Celtic cross and say a prayer.  Then we went down some steps to St Kevin’s kitchen/church. We crossed a bridge over to the mountain path. Everyone wanted to eat lunch! We eventually reached the lower lake, where we all threw a stone in the lake and said a prayer.

After a lot of walking our next stop was the upper lake which is where we had our lunch. But before we ate, we had to think of a prayer, a song and set the table. So we were split in three groups.  My group chose the song: its was “Circle of Friends”. After all that walking everyone was glad to eat. Afterwards we got a list of items that we needed to find for scavenger hunt. We started walking up the steep part of the mountain. It was really hard.

When we came back down we all went to the bus.. it was absolutely lashing rain fro practically the whole day so we were all wet and cold when we got on the bus. It wasn’t too bad though because I bought some nice hot chips.

On the way home, everyone just wanted to go to sleep.

Sean McG.

Our trip to Glendalough

On Saturday, the 8^th of November, we all went on a trip to Glendalough. It was an early start that morning because we all had to be in the church courtyard at 9.30 a.m. once everyone had arrived we all gave our forms to Jenny and piled onto the bus. During the journey we were constantly asking Jenny: “are we there yet?”. After and hour’s journey we finally spotted a sign that said: “welcome to Glendalough”. Once off the bus, a group of boys spotted a huge pile of stones and started to climb onto it. Everyone followed and Jenny decided that this would be a good place to take a photo. After the parents had introduced themselves, we went and played an estimate game and a puzzle. When we were finished Jenny told us about labyrinths. We walked around one and bowed when we were finished. The next thing we saw was St Kevin’s Well. It was quite interesting. When Jenny had finished telling us about it, we were told to dip our fingers in the water and bless our third eye (which is in the middle of your forehead  ). After that, we tied reeds to a tree, to leave a mark of us behind and we said a prayer for someone special.

Next we walked to the graveyard, one of the churches and the cathedral. First, though, we got green paint and rubbed it on our hands or forehead to make a mark for a name for ourselves: courage, kind, etc. It was cool because there was one headstone that said that a person died in 1705. After we left the cathedral, we came to a big lake. We were told to pick a stone and toss it into the lake and say a prayer for someone who is sick. We started to walk to the picnic areas (which was a while away). We were all complaining about the hunger. We soon forgot about that when we were climbing a huge hill (which is the hill my friend slided down when she had slipped) . When we reached the picnic area and had finished our lunches we walked to a small area and we had a head count. The parents handed out scavenger hunt lists and some small plastic bags. We walked for absolutely ages. We were almost at the top until it started to lash rain and we had to turn around. When we reached the place where we had had our lunch, some people were buying hot chocolate to warm up, because we were all soaked to the skin. Once again we all piled onto the bus and journeyed back home. Even though I was absolutely soaked, I really enjoyed the trip because it was great. I’d like to thank Jenny and all the oarebts that helped out for a wonderful day!!

Georgina D.