It’s St. Patrick’s Day, 2021. This is the day in 432 that the eventual Saint Patrick, at the age of 16 was captured by Irish pirates from Great Britain and taken as a slave to Ireland for six years before escaping and returning to his family. After becoming a cleric, he returned to Ireland and became a bishop and eventually, the patron saint of Ireland. Besides St. Patrick’s Day, its Submarine Day, Corned Beef and Cabbage Day and Camp Fire Girls Day. On this day in 1756 St. Patrick’s Day was first celebrated in NYC at the Crown & Thistle Tavern. The reason this is Submarine Day is because in 1898 on this date, John Philip Holland achieved successful test run for the first modern submarine off Staten Island, submerging for 1 hour 40 minutes. In 1947 Arnold J. Toynbee appeared on the front cover of Time magazine. I bring this up for the following quote: “Civilization is a movement and not a condition, a voyage and not a harbor.” In other words, we are on a journey. This is Bobby Jones birthday (1902) He said, “The secret of golf is to turn three shots into two.” This is also the day in 492 that Marcus Aurelius died at the age of 58. I read some of his quotes and discovered that he was a very insightful person. It’s amazing that what he said over 1,500 years ago is still available and relevant. I’ll give you a couple, “Poverty is the mother of crime”. Another: “Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.” I agree. Now, I’m going to start this day. Corn beef and cabbage is on the menu tonight. Abide.
