A lot of conversation in Ireland revolves around the weather. These days we wonder what the Summer will be like, or even stress about whether the weekend will allow a walk or a barbeque. In a way this unpredictability can support our practice and can lead to a reduction in stress: it reminds us that reality is always changing and that we have to be with the present however it manifests, open to possibility and not too fixed in expectations:
A large degree of life happens independent of, and often contrary to, your expectations. At first this may seem dismaying, but as you develop more and more awareness, you eventually start to realize that carrying around this jumble of expectations in your head is a burden and that it gets in the way of being present in, and responding to, the life you have.
Phillip Moffitt, Emotional Chaos to Clarity
photo of Lough Dan in Wicklow by Hugh C
Mindfulbalance 
Always positive thoughts here – even if it’s raining! And I love your new header 🙂
Thanks Jude. We had a sunny morning, took out the barbecue, but rain is forecast. So it keeps us guessing. Glad you like the header. It’s from a monastery site in West Cork where Saint Finbar lived. It’s a very special place. Karl