Have you ever had one of those moments when you were glad you took up an opportunity as it allowed you to experience something special? Well I had one of those on Sunday. A couple of weeks ago Liz McManus, one of my fellow Bray Hill Strollers, invited me to an opening of a public art project that has been 10 years in the making. Sculpture in Woodland is a range of 20 sculptures celebrating the fascinating qualities of wood in a beautiful forest setting called Devil’s Glen. So why was the day so magical?

It started off with weather of high winds, driving rain and increasing road weather alerts. Ignoring all this I got on a train to travel to the house of Liz Mc who is the Member of Parliament for the Wicklow area. Liz lives in a dramatic setting right on the seafront in a house where James Joyce lived as a child. (It was here that he developed a fear of the ocean – it is about 30m from the front door.)

On the way to the sculptural opening Liz asked did I know who Seamus Heaney was? I certainly did as Liz (Day) studied his Nobel winning poetry at high school and of all the poetry she read Heaney’s seemed to be the most influential. (I had also bought a book of his poetry at the Trinity College bookshop the week before.) So I was thrilled that I could be introduced to him at the event where he was the most honoured guest – he is one of Ireland’s living treasures. Seamus H was a delight, interested in life in Australia and very personable. Throughout the trails and the sculptures are various writings of Irish poets inscribed on park benches for people to sit and ponder life.

The opening ceremony, where both Seamus and Liz articulately entertained, finished with a wonderful walk in the woods to see some of the sculptures and miraculously the heavy weather lifted and the sun shone through. I have not stopped smiling since.