Guth & Tuairim, Iúil 1980

Llnlocht mac T1omnachan DRAWINGs~~ woRDs .tR.C1.1\.d.'f' 8 Anseo1 Ansi Bhf laethe mora i gconai i saol mh~intir na Gaeltachta agus ba 1 lana stations' ceann acu sin. Nuair a thagadh se go dtf an t-arn de bhliain (agus basin dhauair sa bhliain), bheadh cluas le heisteacht ar gach duine ag • Aifreann an Domhnaigh le cluinstin ea raibh na stations le bheith ar a mbaile fearann fein. Leoga, b'iomafuair a bhi eagla ar dhaoine go scairtfeadh na 'stations• · acu, ach 'na dhiaidh sin is eile, ba mhor an onoir agus an bheannacht an t-Aifreunn Naofa a leamh faoi dhi'on do thi-. Bhi, ar ndoigh, costas le i s fosta no ni' raibh na tithe an t-arn sin mar ate anois. Ante a s~airteadh na 'stations' chuige, bhi air neHhe go leor a cheannacht leis na comharsana a choinneail o ~haint, no is eagal liom le cois a bheith ag deanamh an-anama, go raibh neart culchainte fosta an la sin. Ar scor ar bith, bhi an teach le 'white-washal' amuigh agus istigh le haol brea balla as loch an Iuir. 'Bhrna doirse uilig le p€inteail. Bhf an simlear le glanadh agus scraith ghlas le cur ar an charn-aoiligh mabht se comhgarach don doras. · Chaithfi gainimh a chur ar an tsraid agus ar an chabhsa. Bhi bairille beag no buiceaidi mora le lfonadh le huisce fa choinne a choisreacadh. Ea E!seo an reamhobair, roimh an la mor. Ar maidin la na stations, bhiodh bunadh an tf 'na sui leis an t6ln-ghealai, tinte thios ·acu, an bord leagtha sa tseomra don bhricfeasta a bheadh indiaidh an Aifrinn. Roimh an naoi a chloJ, bhi corr dhuine ag tarraingt ar an teach, agus leoga, ba chonfach, cholgach a mbunlls gan a gcuid tae no; ar ndoigh, bhi troscadh on mhean-oiche an t-arn sin. Sul a dtagadh na sagairt (beirt de ghnath), bheadh an teach bog lan agus an gleo cainte -ag cur ceo ar do chluasa. A eh a da luas agus a thainig na sagairt, stad an chaint agus ni raibh le clos anois ach guieadoireacht agus trup na gconracha l'1uirie. Nr fhaca tu ariamh Naomh a bh1 inchurtha leo. Dheantaf" an t-uisce a choisreacadh ar dtus agus sin an ait a mbiodh an brU agus an chlamhairt - achan duine ag iarraidh bheith ar tus ag an bhairille. ' Theadh na sagairt chuig .na seomrar agas dheanadh na daoine lfne go dtf na doirse agus theadh duine indiaidh duine isteach chuig faoisidin. Is ioma! sceal atainste fana 'stations'. Chuaigh fear chuig faoistin san Rosa agus chonaic se dha unsa tobac ag g0badh amach as poca an tsagairt agus shantaigh se iad, agus ear a ghluine. "Ghoid me dha unsa tobac o fhear", ar seisean. "Caithfidh tu a dtabhairt do arais 11 , arsa- an sagart. 11 Bhearfaidh me- duitse iad", arsa an fear. "Ni ghlacfaidh mise e 11 , arsa an sagart. 1 Tabhair dci-fhe"ln e 11 • 1 Thairg me do e 1 , arsa an fear,"ach ni ghlacfaidh see'. 1 Tairg arais do €"', arsa an sagart. 1 Glac thusa e 1 , arsa an fear. . "Nf ghlacfaidh", arsa an sagart. 1 Bhal; arsa an fear, 1 thairg me dha uair do each ni ghlacfadh se e•, 1 Bhal, mas mar sin ata• , arsa an sagart' •coinnigh fe"ln el" Bhf" fear eile a ghoid bo ach ba dhoiligh leis an sceal a inse ina iomlalne. · "Ghoid me ropa", ar seisean. "Bhal", arsa an sagart, "nf coir mhillteanach sin ach an ropa a fhagail arais 11 • "Sea'~ arsa an fear, 11 ach bhf" boar an cheann eile den ropa". "Tut, tut", arsa an sagart. "Muna dtugann tu an bho sin arais, nuair a gheobhaidh tu bas, beidh sf a do thoga"ll ar a cuid adharca i bPurgado'lr". "Cha bh!'onn leoga", arsa an fear, "no maoilin ata inti". Ach ar scor ar bith, nuair a bh!odh an fhaoistin criochnaithe, theadh an sagart og amach ag freastal ar na sean-daoine agus ar na daoine tinne sa bhaile agus theadh sagart na paroiste i gceann an Aifrinn. Bh1odh sin ann pobal craifeach agus de ghnSth, dheanadh an sagart sear.unoir fhoirstineach don ocaid. Mheasfa le dearcadh ar an phobal sin nach ndeanfadh siad coir ar bith achoiche arais. Indiaidh an Aifrinn, bhi an tuarastal le cruinni'1 airgead a bh1 leagtha ar gach teach le riar do na sagairt aula dta'inig an coras tir. Leoga, is iomaf uair a bh1 se deacair an t-airgead sin a fha1.1 (ach bhf' dharud i gconaf' a ndearna na daoine cinnte go sahhlil.Odh siad airgead fana gcoinne-tuarastal an t~gairt _agus gearrthacha na comhairle contae). De re1r mar a scairtf" amach a~ cheann an teaghlaigh, d'fbigadh se an t-airgead ar an tahla. Bhf" an teach ag b6nu de rlir a cheile agus ma bhf maidin fhuar ann, is iomai seanduine a raibh an deor ar an ghaothsan acu go bhfuair sf' cupa an tae, a bhf' ceilte orthu on mhe&n-ofche ro~. - , Nuair a bh!odh deireadh ar shiUl, theadh na sagairt chuig a mbricfeas.ta ague is dOlghe gur rearr duinn a bhtagail - h ai e S ean- ean laethe, deirtear go bhtanOiih na' aagairt fatheachna 'stations' go dtian o!"che. McR eH N~ MH . Sean Chrann OUean an I~ir. At two o'clock in the afternoon of Tuesday, June 24th 1947, Kenneth Arnold, a businessman from Idaho, U.S.!. took off from Central Air Service at Chehalis, Washington into bright sunshine. Arnold was flying his-specially designed mountain aircraft to Yakima, Washington. A C46 marine transport plane was reported lost in the mountains, and having an hour to spare and attracted by the 5000 dollar reward, he .flew directly towards the peak of Mt. Rainier, a 9,000 .foot mountain. Suddenly, Arnold was startled by a very bright .flash. He looked around but no aircraft were visible. Then, to the north he observed a formation or very bright objects s~imming the mountain tops at fantastic speed. As they approached he thought they must be jets. "They were flying diagonally in an echelon formation with a larger gap in the echelon between the .first .four and the last five". Arnold, with perfect visibility was astounded because the crafts had no tails. "They .fluttered and sailed, tipping their wings alternately and emitting those very bright blue-white flashes from their highly polished surfaces". The strange aircraft covered the 23 miles between Mt. Rainier in the North and Mt. Adaa. in the south in 1 minute and 42 seconds. Arnold felt sure they were travelling at a speed in excess ·of 1000 milea an hour - a speed which in 1947 was unattainable by any vehicle on earth, - 1an3., sea or air. On landing, Arnold told newsmen, "they flew like a saucer would if you skipped it across the water". The •Flying Saucer• or Unidentified Flying Object (UFO) to give it its scientific name had come of age. Previous to this, men had seen strange sights in the sky since ancient times. In Britain, A.D. 637, "a great star· floated from east to west and there was a noise like thunder". A.D. 1254, "at midnight, in serene sky and clear air with stars shining and the moon eight days old there appeared in the sky a kind of large ship elegantly shaped and well equipped and of ma:rvellous colour" So wrote monks at St. Albans. All onr the world people were seeing "whirling fire wheels", "moons", "suns" and "chariots" in the sky. What are those strange objects in the sky? Are they watching us? Read about some local sigbtinga and find out more in next month's "Guth 7 Tuairim". "Stargazer".