Roscrea Round Tower and St. Conrad’s church

After Hawk and I dropped Jenn off with her friend, to stay a day or two, we stopped at Roscrea Round Tower and St. Conrad’s church. Round towers, originally bell towers, are typically near churches and other religious buildings. You can read a little bit more about them here and here if you want more of a history lesson. But the high point of this stop – well, no, the next to the high point, was the wall. What’s the wall?

The wall is the last bit of the original nave built in the 12th century. And there it is… right on the side of the road. INCHES from cars. INCHES. This is what I mean about history in Ireland being right there up in your business every time you turn around. We would never have something like that in the States! It would be roped off, or moved back from the road, or a road never allowed to be there in the first place, or they’d move the road. And you’d probably have to pay $20 to get anywhere near it. Here? You can just park at the little shops across the street and dodge cars to run over and touch it.

The church that’s there now was built in the 1800’s – from materials they took from the original church, the one wall of which is still standing. The church and graveyard were quiet and peaceful, other than for a small group of boys in the back corner who were just sitting around, chatting, teasing each other, being teenage boys. I kind of actually want that short story; what it’s like to grow up near a 200 year old church, built from stones 600 years older than that, so close to where you live that you and your friends go there to hang out to not be near your parents or siblings.

But let’s be honest… did I even really look at the church and graveyard after I saw the sheep next door?!

I mean.

WHY DO BABY SHEEP HAVE TO BE SO CUTE?????? It’s almost enough to make me want sheep again. Until I remember long days bottle feeding baby sheep.

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