May 10 - Serenity, Leisure, and Diversion

I was up before many others so I opted to help make breakfast. Nothing fancy. Just some eggs, bacon, and toast and I had a few other individuals that jumped in to help as well once I got started. When finished I decided to go for a walk to just have a look around. I made my way over a fence and found some run down buildings I went to explore. Afterward we split up into our cars and had a plethora of activities to choose from with only time for a few today. Our stops ended up being:

Country side pull off

The ruins and the nearby beach

Another pull off for pictures

Chocolate

Cliffs of Kelly

Lighthouse

Cahersiveen for seafood (dinner)

Trying to keep in mind the theme of the day; Serenity, Leisure, and Diversion. I keep thinking of the Serenity Prayer, "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." In particular, the Cliffs of Kelly and the Lighthouse felt very serene. The lighthouse itself was not as spectacular as I had expected but there were some black rocks that were just above sea level so as the waves would come rolling in they would make their way up onto the rocks and then just slowly drain back into the ocean. Something about the rhythmic acoustics just held my attention and I was able to really lose any sense of place and time. I took a moment to really let it sink in by distancing myself from anyone else and practicing some mindfulness.

Upon returning to the Westcove Estate we had a bit of down time. I made my way to the ping pong table and got to know a couple more students. Finishing the night off by "destroying" one of them at ping pong!