A Chance meeting outside a pub in Ennis, Ireland
Monday Ministerial Musings
By Rev. Mark William Ennis
2024 Blog #29
July 21, 2025
A Chance meeting outside a pub in Ennis, Ireland
As you read this, I am in the village of Ennis which is capital of County Claire in Ireland. It was nice of the folks to name the town after me or was it vice-versa? Either way, I am fulfilling a life-long dream and visiting Ennis Ireland.
The trip was longer than it might have been. We were initially delayed by a mechanical problem with our plane, and we waited until another plane might be deployed for our use. After the new plane arrived, there was a second mechanical problem, this time with the door. We waited longer for the door to be repaired before finally preparing for take-off.
As a result of all of this, we arrived in Ennis more than five hours later than we had expected, and more tired, and hungrier than we would have been. This, like most trips, have their share of difficulties and obstacles.
We had an afternoon to walk around town and get to know it a bit. When dinner time arrived, we had a marvelous pub meal. Outside of the pub we met a fabulous group of natives with whom we engaged in conversation. Pub food, I found out, is some of the best in Ireland.
I found the people to be friendly also, intrigued that I had a last name the same as that of the town. They were helpful in suggesting activities for us in the next few days, with instructions on how to get places. I am anxious to try out their suggestions.
These folks asked me about the stadium where the Jets and Giants play. They also wanted my opinion of our president, Donald. They had a few negative things to say about him.
The conversation was winding down when I asked the folks to pose with me for a picture and an upcoming blog. Until then, they had no idea who I was or that I was a blogger. When I gave them business cards, they seemed intrigued that I was clergy, a protestant, and were anxious to read my current blog as well as past ones.
This was a connection that I could not have dreamed of, nor could I have planned for, but so far it has been the highlight of my trip. There is something refreshing about meeting ordinary people in ordinary places. Usually, the more I plan, the more my plans fail. On this trip, the things that I did not plan worked out the best.
I can’t help but think of Psalm 2, which I call the “politician’s psalm.” In this psalm, the leaders of the earth are sitting together rather proudly and make great plans. God, however, is laughing at them and proclaiming the folly of human plans.
Maybe God was laughing at my flight delays, but maybe not. Perhaps God was at work with my schedule so that I had the chance to meet these folks, or maybe it was just chance. I’ll never know, but we took advantage of a chance meeting on the street corner of Ireland and learned a lot about Irish culture and the Irish perception of the United States, and I wouldn’t trade that experience for anything.
I wonder what new experiences await us during this week. Maybe I’ll plan, or maybe I’ll just let God lead the way.
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