St. Patrick's Day

When I was growing up, St. Patrick's Day was a big day. In fact, it was the only day of the year that the extended Murray family got together. We would gather at my great Uncle Johnny's house, eat corned beef and cabbage, potatoes and carrots, and drink green punch. I remember one year in particular, when my cousin Michael (actually my dad's cousin, but he was only 6 months older than me) had all of us kids filling our cups full of green punch, only to find out later that it was the adult punch - spiked with quite a bit of vodka, as I recall. Oy, the headache! I've avoided vodka religiously since then.

This year, my dad decided to make corned beef and cabbage for St. Patrick's Day. So my brother and his wife and two kids, and my wife and I, joined my parents and youngest brother at their home for some hearty fare. My dad had picked up quorn patties for the wife and I (neither of us can eat the corned beef, but we both drool over it), I brought bannock, and my sister-in-law made a green cheesecake with a thin mint crust. Unlike the parties of my childhood, no alcohol was available for consumption. We shared some family stories, skirted around some political issues, and saved the religion discussions for after the more sensitive types had left.

I believe a good time was had by all. I'm not sure how this family tradition of celebrating St. Patrick's Day got started, since the Murray clan is Scottish. Or as my older relatives used to say, "Scots-Irish".