Have you ever been to Lake Derravaragh in Co Westmeath? There you might just see one of the Children of Lir. Back in the mists of time, in Ireland of the legend, King Lir had four little kiddies. But a wicked stepmother was jealous of them and turned them into swans. One of them is still there, and comes out at sundown, as you can see right here.

This is early spring and I just can’t stay indoors. It’s that utterly magic time when our towns and villages are engulfed in cherry blossom; when the green is seeping across the woodlands and hedgerows everywhere.