Phil Brennan

Posted on July 12, 2018

Posted in Phils Blog |

Bright bright sun shiny days

Who would have thought we would have days like these? The landscape is tinged with a golden hue as the crimson light sets seawards each evening. We on the shoreline are lulled into a balmy calm. In the glow, the ordinary becomes magical again. Sand becomes the stuff of dreams for the curious child, the sea sparkles in azure blue enticing even the most reluctant swimmer to take that leap. There’s a buzzing fly hangin’ around the bluebells and the daisies…

Visitors on our Caminos in Waterford have loved the sunshine. There’s an extra spring in the step even under the midday sun. Light radiates energy and we all feed off it. The eclectic shades of attractions here in Waterford are all the more resplendent on a sunny day; mountains, greenway, sea, woods, gardens, cycle routes. Pool them together, add sunshine, and you have something unique.

Waterford always had spell-binding walks and trails but somehow everything seems so much more accessible now. Once separate entities are starting to see the bigger picture and work together. Collaboration is the name of the game and in everyone’s interest. There is a seismic movement at play in how tourism is evolving and all involved need to read the signs. Visitors are looking for something different, something outdoor that invigorates the spirit. Waterford does not disappoint. It has so many hidden gems waiting to be discovered.

There is something so refreshingly positive about the Waterford Greenway experience. We’ve started to blend a Greenway cycle into our Waterford Camino experience and our visitors love it. Starting from the Durrow Carpark at O’ Mahony’s, we cycle at a leisurely pace into Dungarvan and take time to absorb all that we survey along the way. Life feels good as you rest the limbs over lunch and take in all that this beautiful town has to offer.

As you cycle, you leave the world as you know it and are transported to a different space, a sphere beyond our normal consciousness. Adjusting to the radiant hues as we leave the dimmed enchantment of Durrow Tunnel behind, surveying the panoramic vista that awaits us as we free wheel towards Clonea, witnessing the feverish excitement of children as they take this magical odyssey for the first time… you feel privileged simply to be part of it all.

The trail up through Crough Woods to the Mahon Falls has left deep imprints on those who have shared the Camino with us. It’s a walk that not too many know about yet it has everything. It’s a gradual 4 km. climb from the base of the woods up to the Mahon Falls above and you know you are alive when you reach the top. Nature bares its soul as you meander your way upwards to source.

In the dark, the eye begins to see – so true of this walk, so true of life! The soothing sound of the waters rolling downstream provides the perfect backdrop to this adventure. We are shielded in the shade as the light glimmers through on occasion. It is a world apart. In the stillness, all that once defined us is left behind. The water flows by, unwavering in its course, reminding us of what is yet to come.

When we emerge, an amphitheatre of age old rock opens of before us. There’s a subliminal symmetry to it all – sheep, mountains, rocky hillsides… and the water cascades downwards to the awaiting ocean as it has done for millions of years. You sense you are enveloped in something timeless.

The arrival at the Falls completes all that we have experienced en route. The journey matters but reaching the destination is in itself spectacular. It’s great to take a seat on a rock and soak your feet in the streams below and take time to absorb the wonder of it all. No medication could have the same impact!

It’s always good to return to the shore on sunny days. It’s like a tropical oasis out in Newtown Cove at the moment. It has a magnetic draw for people of all ages. Some of our visitors have loved the swim, others prefer to stand on the headland above and take in the mesmerizing view across Tramore Bay. Once you get over the fear of taking that plunge, the thrill kicks in. Children, grandparents, lovers, friends face down their demons and jump. The rush of adrenaline on impact shocks the body back to life. Re-charged and re-booted, you’re ready for the world again!

These simple delights are what make life worth living. The light is glimmering in ways we may not have noticed before. A cycle, a walk through shaded trees, a jump in the sea, a paddle in a stream – our parents and their parents before them have been doing it for years. In a round-about way, we are returning to the ways of old in our search for something new – something free. Here beyond the narrowed walls of digital illusion, we experience the world with our own eyes rather than through the lens of others.

Moments on the Camino remind us that we are not alone, that we are part of something greater. Miniature and all as our life may appear in the universal scheme of things, what each of us do now actually matters. Starting today, learn more, laugh more and do what you truly love to do. The destination is not what matters. The point is making the most of every step in between.

Stillness is the stepping stone to peace. In the rush to compete and achieve, we can easily pass over the smaller, more incidental moments in life. Greek poet Constantine Cavafy said the following of Homer’s epic odyssey to the island of Ithaca, words that echo as much today as they did in 1911 when first penned:

“When you set out for Ithaca ask that your way may be long, full of adventure and full of instruction. Have Ithaca always in your mind. Your arrival there is what you are destined for. But do not hurry the voyage at all. It is better to let it last for years; and even to anchor at the isle when you are old, rich with all that you have gained on the way, not expecting that Ithaca will offer you riches. Ithaca has given you the beautiful voyage. Without her you would never have taken the road”

Since our last post, Elaine and I have enjoyed our special wedding day among family and friends. We know that wherever our path takes us, we will gravitate towards light, laughter, music, family and friends… a great combo! I’ll finish this week with the uplifting sounds of Liam O’ Maonlai who honoured us with his presence and his music on our wedding day.

For further information on Waterford Camino, contact Phil and Elaine on info@waterfordcamino.com

Special thanks to… Aisling Gordon for the wedding photos on video, Colin French for the drone footage and editing and to the Hot House Flowers for the music.

Phil Brennan

Posted on March 23, 2018

Posted in Phils Blog, Uncategorized |

An oasis of calm… Dunmore East

The space shuttle uses more fuel during its first 3 minutes after takeoff than it requires for the remainder of its orbit around the entire earth. The magnetic pull of the world takes great energy to overcome. So true of the space shuttle, so true of our lives! It’s easier sometimes to get drawn into the ways of the world than to open our eyes to what really matters. We do not need to soar to the galaxies beyond to appreciate the wonders of the universe. Star dust lies speckled in the land around us beyond the gaze of a busy mind.

Places of amazing peace and beauty draw us into the vast expanse of mystery. When we ease the rhythmic cadence of our lives, we begin to observe what we may not have noticed before. Water cascading against the rocks at high tide, the warm embrace of light as we leave the dimmed enchantment of the woods behind, flowers daring to show their face across snow-drenched headland, the shimmering glow of the ocean as the sun sets… all soothe the rumblings within and ease us into an unknown world. Dunmore East, more than anywhere I know, does it for me!

It takes time to soak in the unique charm and character of this unspoiled piece of Ireland… to become enchanted by this magical place. The spell-binding beauty of Dunmore East has a mesmeric way of slowing the pulse right down. Long before recorded history, people lived in this hallowed corner of Ireland’s Ancient East. They fished the seas and tilled the land to sustain them through the ravages of the seasons. Its name can be traced to a promontory fort built during the Iron Age referred to by local inhabitants then as Dún Mór, the Great Fort. When you take a trail in Dunmore East, you walk quite simply in the footsteps of those who have gone before.

The Dunmore East Cliff Walk lulls us unknowingly into a mystical space. This ancient 3 km. trail meanders its way from the harbour to Portally Cove across a recently cleared pathway. Many proud locals have worked hard to make this possible. Generations to come can now follow the trail of their ancestors. Below the cliff lies inlets and smugglers’ caves carved out of conglomerate red sandstone, known locally as “pudding sandstone”, which was used to construct the harbour from 1814. Here, the senses are stirred into life and are embalmed by the soothing embrace of the sea air.

It’s good on occasion to simply allow time to stand still, to ease the pace of the walk, to calm the tempest of the mind and soak it all in. Energy ripples in symmetry with the dancing of the waves. What we observe leaves lasting imprints; the magical hues of the azure ocean as it laps onto the flat rocks, the languid majesty of the seal as it basks in the sun, the silhouette of Hook Lighthouse as it peers out through misty skies. In observing the waters stretch out to the distant horizon, we sense intuitively the merging of what is near with timeless echoes from afar.

A short trip out to sea on return to the harbour completes this experience. You’d never know what you could meet as you sail out into the Bay. Dolphins, basking sharks and even whales have been spotted. Time in ‘The Keltoi Warrior’ is precious time. Brendan takes us on a voyage of discovery, sharing anecdotes on the coves and sea caves, narrowing the lens to absorb the sublime beauty of the miniscule against the towering backdrop of the cliffs. We are transported beyond our normal frontiers. It feels like a homecoming.

The Dunmore East to Creadon Head walk is equally memorable. This beautiful trail was once the ancient “main road” from Cork to London. An easy to moderate 6 km. walk along beach, lane and field, the views are breath-taking. Forty hand-hewn steps, leading down to sea-level can still be found in the rocks. At the base of the peninsula is ‘Trá na Mná Gorm’ (The Strand of the Blue (negro) Women), giving credence to the legend that slaves were landed, or trans-shipped via the steps to far-away places. Their faint murmurings still linger as the sun descends on glistening waters.

It’s not easy to slow down in a world that moves at pace. The key to life is balance. Exertion without rest ultimately drains the spirit and stifles our real potential. We heave our way to our next target on the treadmill of life and rarely connect to source. You see the inner world does not reveal itself cheaply. It takes time. What is on the outside compares little to what lies within. More and more people are waking up to this reality.

The exploits of the Irish Rugby team warmed the collective hearts of a nation battling arctic conditions. They delivered a level of performance that suggested that there is even more to come from their incredible odyssey. Strength that endures is unearthed from within. We who surveyed their latest conquest knew they had gone deep into the well and retrieved all that was needed to help them achieve their common goal. Mind, body and soul in perfect synch! Such is the equilibrium we all need if we are to achieve our higher purpose.

Nature has a way of reminding us of who we are and what we are capable of. Each one of us can tap into the storehouse of energy and resilience on the inside. No one should think so little of themselves that they fail to see their own worth. When Michelangelo was asked how he carved the beautiful statue of David in Florence, he replied, “I just saw David in the block of marble without the blemish, and I just removed everything that wasn’t David.” We too are like that uncarved block of marble. There is magnificence inside of us all; something uncrushable waiting to be sculpted into life. The legacy we leave is born from within!

Our individual story is just one melodic movement in the wider symphony of the universe. No matter how small or insignificant we may appear, each one of us is part of something greater than ourselves. This is the mystery of life made simple. We all have a song to sing, a story to tell, a higher purpose to map out. There is a life force at play in the universe that can steer us on our way. Our inner compass must do the rest!

“Go placidly amid the noise and haste and remember what peace there may be in silence…

You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should…

In the noisy confusions of life, keep peace with your soul… With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.”
(‘Desiderata’, Max Ehrmann 1927)

Dr. Phil Brennan and his fiancée Elaine are founders of Waterford Camino Tours. They will be partnering with the Strand Inn, Dunmore East to promote a series of cycling and walking trails with the Strand Inn Log Cabins as a base for the 3 to 5 Day Camino experience.

For further information, check out ‘Dunmore East-time for you’ or the ‘Leisure-Cycle Camino’, led by Michael Garland’ on waterfordcamino.com You can email Phil and Elaine directly on: info@waterfordcamino.com

Phil Brennan

Posted on October 2, 2017

Posted in Phils Blog, Uncategorized |

Something inside so strong

Never let a stumble be the end of your journey. Dreams can come true but not always as easily as you would like! We all know how it feels to reach the edge of the precipice and see our hopes dashed before us. We stand and stare and do not always understand. We feel the pain and momentarily become suspended in time. Our coordinates become dimmed, our future obscure.

Our next step, possibly after months of impasse, will determine who we are to become.

“By every usual standard, I was the biggest failure I knew.”

Those are the words of J.K. Rowling, the author whose book series has been translated into 73 languages, sold millions of copies and accumulated over $20 billion through movie adaptations and sponsorships.

Rowling’s story is one of perseverance, a stoic resolve to overcome the disappointments and the knocks spewed up by life until she got her first break. Through it all, she offers us a perspective on failure that is all the more humbling and inspiring given her subsequent success.

Soon after conceiving the idea for Harry Potter, Rowling began writing, but was immediately pulled away from her work by the devastating death of her mother. Rowling ceased working on the book and sank into a deep, grieving depression, getting little to nothing accomplished in that time.

In the hopes of digging herself out of grievance, she took a job teaching English in Portugal for a year. Her goal in venturing abroad was to get away from her troubles, and, more importantly, use her time off to continue working on her book. She set the goal of having the first Harry Potter book done by the time she returned from Portugal.

Things did not go as planned. Not only did Rowling fail to make progress on her first book, but after falling in, and then out of, love, she ended up with a failed marriage and a baby daughter she now had to raise alone. She came back to nothing. She had no job, no finished product and two mouths to feed.

She had hit rock bottom. As she struggled with depression, raising a child on her own and living off mere unemployment benefits, she resumed work on her book in cafes while her daughter was asleep.

“Failure taught me things about myself that I could have learned no other way. I discovered that I had a strong will, and more discipline than I had suspected; I also found out that I have friends whose value was truly above rubies… I was set free, because my greatest fear had already been realised, and I was still alive… And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.” (J.K. Rowling)

You can be cruising along at low altitude unaffected by turbulence and uncertainty, yet, in an instant, all can change. It is here, in our darkest hour, when we are tossed and buffeted about by the unforgiving winds of time … that we come to know ourselves for who we are.

Despite numerous setbacks, she found solace in doing what she loved -writing. In fact, she found that the little she had was enough to make her moderately happy. She had ended up in exactly the position she had feared most and found that it wasn’t that bad. There wasn’t anything left to be afraid of and her work showcased that mindset.

When Rowling finally finished the first 3 chapters, she sent the manuscript off to a publisher-they quickly passed on the project. She sent it to another publisher. Again, the answer was ‘No’. Her mailbox filled up with rejection letters, but she didn’t let it stop her.

After sending her manuscript to 12 different publishers and getting rejected by every single one, Rowling began losing confidence in her book. Finally, the editor of Bloomsbury Publishing Company sat down to read the manuscript and so did the editor’s 8 year old daughter. The little girl loved the opening chapters, and begged to read the whole thing. This made the publisher agree to publish Rowling’s novel. But Rowling was left with a warning that she should get a day job, because she wouldn’t make any money writing children’s books. Once’ Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone’ was published, though, she proved everyone wrong.

“I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me… Failure meant a stripping away of the inessential.” (J.K. Rowling)

J.K. Rowling went from being a jobless single mother living off unemployment benefits to one of the bestselling authors of all time. Looking back, the Harry Potter Series has earned over $400 million in book sales, and the last movie alone earned $476 million in ticket sales… on opening weekend. Failure had been an important stimulus on the road to her success. What was it that sustained her on her way? Something indefinable, something real, something inside so strong…

“The knowledge that you have emerged wiser and stronger from setbacks means that you are, ever after, secure in your ability to survive. You will never truly know yourself, or the strength of your relationships, until both have been tested by adversity.” (J.K. Rowling)

We all have the reserves within to withstand the storms of life. Wading through the torrent builds character and makes you more appreciative of what is waiting for you when you reach the other side. We cannot allow our deepest fears and misgivings sabotage our future. If you have a dream or a passion and you keep getting rejected or running into failure, don’t let that stop you… don’t give up! If you do, you will never know what could have been.

“One thing is for sure. If you give up too soon, you’ll never know what you’ll be missing. Keep going and never quit.” (J.K. Rowling)

The purpose of life is a life of purpose. When you passionately believe in something that doesn’t exist, create it. Nothing worth achieving is handed to us. Find out what you truly want and direct your energies towards it. Be true to you rather than drift anonymously into the slipstream of others. People on the sidelines do not matter only those close to you. Each one of us has a life to live. It is ours and ours alone.

That first step, that venturing out into the unknown, can lead you onwards to where you are meant to be.

“Have your beautiful things but do not be imprisoned by them. Own them but do not let them own you. Give the main aim of your life over to far more important pursuits such as discovery of your highest potential, giving of yourself to others and making a difference by living for something more important than yourself. Success is fine but significance is the real name of the game.” (Robin Sharma)

If you fancy a reflective break away, join us on one of our Waterford Caminos. For further information check out waterfordcamino.com or email Phil at waterfordcaminotours@gmail.com

(Thanks to Morgan Ostrowsky at ‘The Uncollege Blog’ for the research)

(Thanks to Brendan St John’s photography for featured image of Tramore)

Phil Brennan

Posted on September 12, 2017

Posted in Phils Blog, Uncategorized |

High Hopes – takes me back to where we started

The High Hopes Choir has a unique story to tell. A spark was lit by renowned conductor David Brophy 4 years ago rippling out from its humble origins in the Edmund Rice Centre to include homeless people from Cork, Dublin and Waterford. Something irrepressible has started… a movement of sorts that has transformed the lives of those involved. People once silenced are beginning to find their voice.

As Musical Director of the Waterford choir, I have been privileged to walk the road with them over the past 2 years. They remind me of what matters most in life. They have made me stare into the inner depths of my own soul and discover anew the power of the ‘flawed note’ to guide me in life to where I want to be. Something flickers within each of them to lighten the darkened path!

“At times our own light goes out and is re-kindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.” (Albert Schweitzer)

On a recent Waterford Camino, our group of visitors retreated from the wildness of the cliff walk in Dunmore East to the relative sanctuary of the Edmund Rice Chapel for a reflective workshop with the High Hopes. With spontaneous ease, members of the choir shared their story, handing over the baton between songs from one to the next in common solidarity. We who listened were jolted to the core. There was a stunned silence, a deep empathy, an aching realisation that those before us could just so easily have been my son, my daughter… me!

In recent years, the High Hopes have performed at a myriad of high-profile events from the European Parliament to the Aviva Stadium to Electric Picnic, they have shared their song and their story from Bellaghy to Villierstown, yet, here, in this most intimate of settings beyond the cameras and the lights, they had really come into their own. Their unfiltered notes resonate deeply precisely because they articulate a raw truth, a glorious truth – an awakening of sorts to the reality that their mistakes and their failings do not define them as people. A fragile light still radiates from within.

“Circumstances do not make the person, they reveal the person. We’re not responsible for the cards we are dealt but we are responsible for how we play them. It’s not how you start. It’s how you finish” (Cathy McCarthy)

The Waterford High Hopes Choir recently journeyed up the Waterford Greenway for some ‘time-out’ together. We wanted to share our first Camino with them. They blazed their trail in their own inimitable style. We rambled at a leisurely pace oblivious to the world around us yet enraptured by it! We visited Durrow Tunnel, reflected on the struggle to find light when all around seems bleak, sang, laughed, had silent times then laughed again. We had opened our pores to the rhythm of the universe as it danced before us.

Just spending time together was enough. Yes, we had little treats along the way; ice-cream at O’ Mahony’s pub and a meal out when we got back to Waterford – yet their gratitude was like no other. Maybe, in that fleeting moment, they felt valued, they felt surrounded by warmth, they felt that their individual story actually mattered in the universal scheme of things. Either way, it was a moment in time. They disappeared into the night knowing that they were not alone.

I am slowly realising that we cannot come to know the people on the margins from a safe distance. Walking alongside the homeless has led me to a new place. Here I have discovered the indivisible union between me and those singing before me. We are one. Maybe it’s that I know only too well what it feels like to be broken, to lose everything, to slip up, to fall short… only when we come to know the homeless as friends, when we share the most precious gift of all, our time, with them, do we come to see in them the reflection of our truest selves.

You see each member of the choir is unique. No two stories are the same, yet, together, they become a tidal wave of honesty challenging a world that can walk idly by. From somewhere deep within, they have found their song – a prophetic song. We all need to walk into unknown spaces and listen. Here, on the underside, we move beyond our perceptions and come to know these people for who they really are. One of the members, Alice, captures the cold reality for all too many who linger silently in the shadows:

When you’re out during the night,
It gets so dark one forgets the light.
When you walk for hours alone,
Time lingers, hours unshown.
All is glooming in the night,
Al l shadows still and quiet.
Until you see the light of day,
The fear of night will forever stay.
(Alice)

A thought struck me as I stood on the lower Cusack Stand at the end of a pulsating All Ireland hurling final and felt the sheer agony of defeat etched on the faces of those in blue and white. Light shines most brightly against a darkened backdrop. Fans and players alike had been participants in an amazing symphony that had reached its tragic denouement. A strange catharsis was evolving around me, an emptying of raw emotion in shared desolation. Yet hope simmered on the horizon. A terrible beauty was born!

Everyone needs heroes, even those who have fallen. If anything, we can relate better to those who do not reach their holy grail because we’ve all been there ourselves. The glory rests with the victors who take the crown when the game is done, yet the many disconsolate figures viewing from below have their own kind of grandeur. Today’s pain may well herald a new tomorrow.

The odyssey of life will take many twists and turns, yet, with a resilient spirit, anything is possible. The High Hopes are living proof! Their song soars long after the last note has been sung. They are our beacon, guiding us home.

“Lights will guide you home and ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you” (Cold Play)

For further information on Waterford Camino Tours, email Phil at waterfordcaminotours@gmail.com

(Guitar picture, thanks to Brendan St John’s photography 2017)