Time to restore lost faith
There are so few happy endings to stories these days that sometimes it feels like we've completely lost faith in humanity. But sometimes we have to remind ourselves that a little bit of optimism, generosity and belief goes a long, long way.
Looking at the flotilla of boats making their way into Foigha Bridge in Kenagh for the first time in 61 years at the weekend, it was hard not to remark on how the optimism and belief of a few has transformed the waterways in Co Longford.
The Royal Canal was essentially written off as an amenity for many years but the various branches of the Royal Canal Amenity Group have been fighting for decades to restore the Canal to its former glory. These groups are made up of a few hardy souls who have not only campaigned and lobbied for the re-opening of the Royal Canal but they also go down and get their hands dirty by working to clean up the Canal areas. At the weekend, we saw a triumph of these few and their success has the potential to affect so many Longfordians.
For many years, the re-opening of the Royal Canal as far as Longford seemed like a pipe dream but now it looks like it could be a reality. The v1m development underway in Clondra at the moment will see the complete transformation of the waterway in the village and will provide hitherto undreamt of facilities in the area. The work carried out there has been a major success to date and there is no doubt that the completed project will rejuvenate the picturesque village of Clondra.
The aim of the Royal Canal Amenity Group has been to restore the Canal as far as Longford town. This would open up the Canal from Dublin to Longford. The benefits of this are multi-fold. Speaking in the Longford Leader last week, Noel McGeeney of the Longford Royal Canal Amenity group called on local councillors and members of the public to put their weight behind calls for the re-opening of the canal as far as Longford town.
Many people may doubt that this could ever happen but these doubters should get in their cars and travel out to Clondra, to Foigha Bridge and Branigan Harbour to see how the waterways dominate the landscape, and how the community benefits from this. This all happened because people believed it could happen – now we just have to believe in the next step.
While the happy ending for the Royal Canal remains to be seen, there was another happy ending in Longford this week. Longford town man Joe Donlon outlined his difficulty in obtaining an eircom landline in Longford in recent weeks. He explained that without a landline, he could not use his panic button and, as he was wheelchair bound, this panic button was a vital necessity.
Niall Lambe of Future Positive read the article and offered Joe a free phone which has a facility akin to a panic button. "Anyone who doesn't depend on either an alarm or pendant for security reasons would not understand but to people like us, it is a lifeline to others," Joe Donlon told the Leader.
Today, Mr Donlon has a facility to contact others immediately if he needs assistance. This small gesture has made a huge difference to his daily life. For the rest of us, it should go a little way towards restoring our faith in humanity.
In these times that we are living in, there are many reasons for people to be worried – back to school costs, job prospects, bills, NAMA, industrial unrest, etc but we cannot let negativity dominate our entire lives. A little optimism, generosity and belief can go a long way to restoring our faith in society and in ourselves.
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Weather for Longford, Ireland
Thursday 17 May 2012
Today
Light rain
Temperature: 6 C to 12 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: South east
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 7 C to 11 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North east
