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The Day The Rams Came to Town

Wednesday, September 2nd, 2015

In 2008 Jim and I made our first visit to the Connemara region of County Galway, staying at a lovely B&B and restaurant in the charming village of Leenane, which rests on a hill above the shore of Killary Harbour, one of three fjords in Ireland.

This was about the time that I had become REALLY serious about photographing sheep; in fact it was the Portfinn Lodge and Fjord Restaurant manager to whom Jim remarked that “Ann won’t be satisfied until she has photographed EVERY sheep in Ireland.” Imagine my surprise when he told me that the annual Blackface Ram Fair would be hosted right in the road in front of our B&B, starting at 5:00 A.M. the next day.

Sure enough, the rams arrived not long after daybreak, and the parked trailers stretched from one end of the crescent-shaped harbour to the other.

The purpose of the fair is to allow farmers to purchase rams from different blood lines to keep their herds from becoming inbred. In addition to the commerce that takes place, the event is a huge social occasion, so I had a wonderful time photographing the action and learning about Blackface Rams.

Much of the activity took place on the road in front of the Leenane Sheep and Wool Museum, which Jim and visited at a later date.

Wherever you turned, you would see sheep tethered to SOMETHING.

This gentleman asked me to photograph his rams and, put the picture on the Internet, and tell everyone that these are fine examples of Blackface Rams. I was happy to oblige. I hope he had a great day at the Fair. I certainly did!

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About All Those Sheep . . .

Sunday, August 30th, 2015

Early on in our visits to Ireland I became addicted to photographing sheep. I’m fairly certain that my interest in them gained traction one rainy day in Donegal, near Killybegs. I discovered that even on the dreariest of days, sheep make interesting subjects. Plus I really admire the way they never seem to fret about the rain.

Neither do they mind sharing a pasture with others.

And they are so colorful! Spray painting a herd is a branding technique used by farmers whose sheep graze on open land. When it come time to round them up, their ownership can be sorted out by their colors. Some sheep are sprayed with a single color, others with two, and sometimes you’ll see sheep that border on the psychedelic.

After a while I noticed that some sheep really like to pose for the camera. Honestly they do. Granted that most sheep will run off when you approach them.

Some who are munching away on grass, resting or ruminating may not move at all and won’t look into the camera even if you set off a firecracker to get their attention.

However, some sheep REALLY like to pose.

Some, in fact, look positively blissful when they pose.

Some like to look directly into the lens . . .

. . . while others prefer to show off their distinguished profiles.

Many are most comfortable while posing in their natural environment.

Some sheep like to pose all by themselves . . .

. . . while others prefer group portraits.

Every so often, one is so shy that he will do anything to avoid the camera.

Posers usually have a way of making themselves known; just look for the one sheep in the group who pays attention to what you are doing. I find they like to hear you talk to them.

Some will be so happy to have human companionship that they’ll come right to you . . . and bring their friends with them.

It’s evident that I’ve become pretty invested in this sheep thing, and every year I look forward to heading to Ireland in search of posing sheep. Of course I couldn’t have found so many without Jim’s expert driving ability and willingness to sit by the side of the road and read and smoke his pipe while I’m off sheep hunting. From the photo below, I’m not certain whether he’s laughing at me or at the sheep. Either way, I’m grateful for his help.

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An Evening with Kieran Goss: Reasons to Stay

Thursday, July 16th, 2015

In August, 2003, Jim and I made our first trip to Ireland. My family heritage is Scots-Irish-English, but it wasn’t family history that compelled me to nag Jim relentlessly to find time away from the business to spend a week in Ireland: It was the music. I grew up with folk music, and so much of it is rooted in the Celtic tradition. I wanted to go where I could hear live music with Celtic instrumentation (traditional and contemporary) and to visit some of the places I’ve heard about in simple, tuneful, unforgettable Irish songs.

On our second visit we returned to the breathtaking Dingle Peninsula, which captivated us on our all-too-short stay in 2003. I stopped by the Dingle Record Shop to pick up some CDs and asked about any live pub sessions that evening, and I was delighted to learn that a well-respected Irish singer-songwriter, one Kieran Goss, would be playing an informal session in a church building undergoing renovation. Kieran was looking for audience feedback on songs he was considering for an upcoming CD that would be recorded in the U.S.

So at dusk we found our way to St. James Church, and I got my first listen to Kieran’s wonderful songs. On that memorable night in Dingle Town, he sang “Reasons to Leave,”  the song that made me an instant fan of both his compositions and his talent as a performer.

Over the years I have played “Reasons to Leave” again and again, and I still find it remarkable that the song’s opening four-line stanza so perfectly sums up why I feel the way I do about Ireland:

Ireland’s a dream
Of hope for what the day will bring.
The land and the sea
Is what I’ve come to trust.

And yet the context in which Kieran wrote this emotional gem is so different from mine: I am drawn to Ireland as a visitor; I come to this rejuvenating land and sea to slow down the pace of my world, to visit with wonderful Irish friends, and to bring myself back to the pure love of photography. But Kieran writes about the soul-wrenching dilemma that so many generations of Irish citizens have faced in deciding whether to eek out a living in their beguiling country during impossible economic times or to leave their home and family in search of a better future.

Loving Ireland the way I do, it’s enormously sad to contemplate having to face such a devastating decision. When I’m searching online for videos of Irish musicians, I read the comments of Irish expatriates in Australia, the UK, Canada, America and elsewhere, who forthrightly express their longing for home; many say they are not quite sure where they belong, and the music is a healing bridge to their past.

In discussing the genesis of “Reasons,” Kieran explained that some of his 15 siblings made the hard decision to immigrate, and he writes about the emotional conflict of their urging him to do the same, in the face of his compulsion to remain in Ireland:

All that I am
Is telling me I should not go.
And all that I know
Is they’re telling me I must.

At the heart of this soulful song, Kieran sums up his dilemma in terms of reasons to leave and reasons to stay:

Reasons to leave
Are money and finding better work.
Reasons to stay
Are music and love.

Reasons to leave
Are fortune and fame for what it’s worth.
The reason to stay
Is heaven on earth.

Kieran’s decision to stay in Ireland has led to a solid career, with devoted fans like me all around the world. I visit his website often in hopes that I can catch a concert, either in Ireland or at home. You can sample some of Kieran’s music at this link on iTunes. If you love James Taylor, I bet you will love Kieran Goss. But first, watch his “Reasons to Leave” video below. To me it is a treasured reminder of a magical evening that was very nearly heaven on earth.

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