EVERYTHING BLOOMING :

Foxglove.

Fairy Thimble.

ORGANIC COLLEGE: An tIonad Glas, the Organic College in Drumcollogher is delighted to announce that they will be opening the student shop to the public, every Thursday from 12pm to 4pm. They will have lots of seasonal produce, plants, jams, chutneys, compost etc available throughout the season. Keep an eye on the college's social media page for updates on what's available. Contactless card payments accepted. CONGRATS: We send Happy Birthday wishes to Tommy O'Gorman, Knockfierna, who was celebrating one of those roundy birthdays, on the 11th Jul. Greybridge Classic Club held a cross country run at the end of June and as a result were able to present a cheque of €2,000 to Epilepsy Ireland. Their next day out is a ' Car Run '. Sunday 25th July, at Croom Mill, Church Rd, V35E306. Registration: Starts at 1pm, Leaving: 2pm. GIVE BLOOD: Nearest clinic - South Court Hotel Raheen, Thursday 29th - 16:15 - 19:30. Clinics are by appointment only. Please ring 061 306980 or 1850 731137 to book your appointment. Bring Photo ID and do eat and be well hydrated before giving blood. Children under 18 are not allowed to attend the clinics. Donors must wear medical -grade face masks in the clinic with the exception of pre and post donation hydration. Other face coverings, such as visors and snoods, will not be accepted, this is in the interest of public health. TROCAIRE NEWS: Trócaire is continually campaigning to hold big business to account for human rights abuse and environmental damage around the world. A case in point was that of 45 year-old Berta Cáceres – a mother of four, an environmentalist and human rights activist, who campaigned against the construction of a Dam on their local Gualcarque River. On the 5th July, the Honduran Supreme Court handed justice to the family of Berta Cáceres, who pursued a five-year legal battle against the CEO of energy development company 'DESA' for the murder of their mother. Emotional scenes erupted outside the courtroom as David Castillo’s (CEO of DESA) guilty verdict was delivered in front of Berta’s family, members of COPINH (the rights organisation co-founded by Berta) and the many supporters who campaigned continuously for justice. In a landmark ruling, Castillo will be sentenced in August for murdering Berta. Castillo was convicted as a co-collaborator in ordering the murder, which means that the other co-collaborators are still to be brought to justice. Lawyers anticipate a 20–30 year prison term to be handed down for the crime. While this verdict is extremely welcome, we need to remember that a culture of impunity (failure to bring perpetrators of human rights violations to justice) still exists in Honduras and other parts of the world, for attacks against human rights and environmental defenders who challenge corporations. IMAGINE: Today we have all the comforts in the world, even amidst a pandemic. But, we complain because we need to wear masks. We complained because we had to stay confined to our homes, where we had food, electricity, running water, wi-fi, even Netflix ! None of that existed back in the day. But humanity survived those circumstances and never lost their joy of living. The following puts things into perspective, I think. " Imagine you were born in 1900. When you're 14, World War I begins and ends when you're 18, with 22 million dead. Soon after a global pandemic, the Spanish Flu, appears, killing 50 million people. And you're alive and 20 years old. When you're 29 you survive the global economic crisis that started with the collapse of the New York Stock Exchange, causing inflation, unemployment and famine. When you're 33 years old the Nazis come to power. When you're 39, World War II begins and ends when you're 45, with 60 million dead. In the Holocaust 6 million Jews die. When you're 52, the Korean War begins. When you're 64, the Vietnam War begins and ends when you're 75. " A child born in 1985 thinks his grandparents have no idea how difficult life is, but they have survived several wars and catastrophes. We have an awful lot to be thankful for and we should do everything we need to do, to protect and help each other.