Kate Thompson

☘️This day, beneath a sky washed in green, I stood in Galway watching Saint Patrick’s Day unfold, not as a parade, but as a living memory of a people who remember who they are. I smiled for a long time, quietly, almost in disbelief. Yet my smile carried the weight of another place. Before me, a nation moved as one: artists, communities, universities, voices—each different, yet bound in a single rhythm. It was not performance, but belonging made visible. A people who endured the long shadow of occupation, and still rose, patiently,to shape dignity out of memory. And as I watched, I saw Palestine. I imagined our streets. Our people. Our voices rising together, not under siege, but in freedom. I asked myself, almost in a whisper: will we one day stand like this? With this unity, this sovereignty, this unbroken sense of belonging? How alike these two peoples are, the Irish and the Palestinian, each carrying history carved by struggle, each refusing to lose themselves. Galway continues to move me. Today, I stood at the very back of the crowd, unable to see. And then, a small moment that felt immense, a woman from security recognised me. She took my hand and guided me forward through the crowd. People stepped aside, not reluctantly, but with a warmth I cannot explain. When she told them I was a Palestinian journalist, they welcomed me as if I were already known. There are moments when kindness feels almost sacred. For the Irish, this day is celebration. For me, it became something else, A quiet, growing desire to belong. To share in their joy and their memory. And somewhere within me, between what I carry and what I hope, one question remains: Will we, too, one day stand like this? May Ireland remain in peace and dignity 🇮🇪☘️🇵🇸 #patrikda #galway #irlanda🇮🇪 #irland #patrik_day