Columnists
Fr Paddy: Leave the phone at home
“God brings forth His Son in thee, whether thou likest it or not, whether thou sleepest or wakest; God worketh His own will. That...
Andrew McDonald: Dealing with cold and flu season
Cold and flu season has started to make its unwanted presence familiar again.
Last year, many of us were in lockdown for long periods and...
Fr Paddy: Celebrating the feast of St Francis
This week we celebrate the Feast of St Francis. St Francis is among the most beloved and most familiar of all the saints of...
Andrew McDonald: How to stop the dreaded hiccups
Buddy Holly and Michael Jackson shared the same talent for using a singing technique few artists even seriously attempt, never mind master.
A vocal hiccup...
Fr Paddy: Wisdom on life
George Carlin at age 102, offered the following wisdom that is deeply relevant for us all.
If you don’t read this to the very end,...
Andrew McDonald: Parent/child sleep wars
The battle to get your kids to sleep is well-known to most parents.
It’s a natural part of growing up when children test boundaries and...
Fr Paddy: Harvest thanksgiving .. A time for justice
Perhaps this harvest time is an opportunity for us all, to acknowledge the fruits that we all have in the depth of our being.
Fruits...
Andrew McDonald: Explore a world from your home
The planned ending of Covid-related restrictions in October will come as a relief to most of us.
Nothing is confirmed yet and, as with anything...
Fr Paddy: Don’t quit…
There was once a bunch of tiny frogs, who arranged a running competition. The goal was to reach the top of a very high...
Breaking Ball: Brilliant TV service would be huge loss and junior football clubs deserve...
On Sunday evening last as the draw was being made for the second round of the Laois senior football championship, Laois GAA chairman Peter...
Fr Paddy: Climate Crisis all our concern
‘May you live in interesting times’, it’s said, is a translation of a traditional Chinese curse. Sometimes, like the present, we discover we could...
Andrew McDonald: Staying well online
If your friend said they spent their time deliberately annoying other people, how would you react?
Be happy that their life was obviously productive and...
Fr Paddy: Take a deep breath
The person who has probably done most in the Christian world to promote the idea of concentrating on our breathing as a form of...
Breaking Ball: Three clubs with new challenges as no rest before championship defence gets...
For Portarlington, Clough-Ballacolla and The Harps, last weekend brought the best of times.
After a year-and-a-half of our lives being turned upside down due to...
Andrew McDonald: Boost your mental health by reviewing your social media use
Over the past weeks and months that I’ve been writing this column, I’ve provided bits and pieces of advice for dealing with anxiety, depression...
Fr Paddy: Ten tips for keeping balance and Minding our mental health
Recent research shows that levels of mental illness, anxiety, and depression are at an all-time high, especially among younger people.
I recently came across these...
Andrew McDonald: The benefits of a hot cup
Write a list of stereotypically Irish things and it’s guaranteed “a cup of tea” features prominently.
In recent years this has changed with coffee becoming...
Fr Paddy: Olympic Inspiration
Wilma Rudolph is the absolute proof that nothing is impossible.
Born prematurely, in a family of 21 children, with little to no resources to sustain...
Andrew McDonald: Peer support through lived experience
In this column, we have already looked at how recovering from a mental health crisis is only the first stage on the path to...
Fr Paddy: The giver is bigger than the receiver
I love this story from Katharine Hepburn’s childhood; it is beautiful, in her own words...
“Once when I was a teenager, my father and I...
Breaking Ball: Ladies football approach and Brennan’s attitude a joyful release in a cynical...
The Laois ladies footballers are on course to be the feel-good story of the year on the local sporting scene.
They may not win the...
Andrew McDonald: Recovery is a journey
Recovering from poor mental health is dependent on learning a whole new range of life skills.
Once the crisis period of whatever condition a person...
Fr Paddy: Harvest … A time to give thanks
Time seems to be flying by. It’s hard to believe that August has arrived so quickly!! I pray that this wonderful Season of hope,...
Andrew McDonald: Overcoming vaccination needle fear
Needles are not something any of us looks forward to. Fortunately, unless we have an ongoing health concern, most of us don’t have to...
Fr Paddy: Grandparents – a real blessing
This week, in a special way we are invited to reflect on the role of grandparents.
Family is all about ‘connection’, and grandparents are vital...
Andrew McDonald: Lockdown… To Be Or Not To Be?
Hopefully, we're well on the way back to freedom now. Few of us will be sad to see lockdown leave us.
That said, with the...
Fr Paddy: Sadness and anger at the death of Fr Stan Swamy SJ
News of the death in prison of Fr Stan Swamy SJ, an Indian human rights activist, has occasioned great sadness and not a little...
Andrew McDonald: Mental wellness and new dads
Among the biggest events in life are your own wedding and becoming a parent. The former is more of a gradual process.
You meet somebody...
Fr Paddy: Gathering around the table
I was really disappointed for so many children and families who again were prohibited from celebrating baptisms, communions and confirmations.
Our churches continue to be...
Andrew McDonald: The father of hypnotherapy
A quick question. Who is considered the founder of modern psychology?
The chances are you responded “Sigmund Freud” pretty much without thinking! Actually, if you...
