Photo was taken at the weekend near Farran, Co.Cork (Irl)

Recent fine weather saved the Irish Harvest this year. Yields may have been down but it was great that farmers got a chance in the end, to get it cut and brought in.

Thought on Friday – September – 21/09/2012

‘Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared. ~Buddha quote

Today (Sep 21st) is the feast of St.Matthew. He was a tax collector and as a result people hated and despised him. As a result of his lifestyle he was an outcast but yet Jesus saw beyond his role as a tax collector and knew that he had so much to give his expanding team. As a tax collector, his life was in darkness. Like an unlit candle, it wasn’t making much of an impact. It all changed when he met Jesus and like a candle feeding other candles, his life became a source of inspiration and hope for so many.

His feast day coincides with the autumn equinox, of equal light and darkness. Matthew himself was the writer of the first of the four gospels and his gospel highlights the equality that Jesus brought to everyone he met. For Matthew every person was to be valued and respected for who they were. Everyone had a contribution to make particularly at local level and for Matthew there were no exceptions. Today’s feast day also challenges us in how we treat others. Do I treat people differently according to what they have, own or speak? We are encouraged to make as few distinctions as possible. It is never easy but Matthew led the way.