I took the train from Belfast to Dublin.The journey was interesting, but was really amazing when B.Paddy ( a Black Paddy working as inspector in the train ) met Mary (an elderly REAL Irish sitting with her husband).As routine inspection of all travelers Mr B.Paddy asked the couple to show him their tickets and they had only one ticket.He asked for the second ticket but they said as the husband holds a free pass they got only one ticket .He informed them that they need another ticket and he gave them a form to fill in and would give them the second ticket.It looked OK to me .but as Mr B.Paddy left the couple ,the wife was so angry that a Black Paddy will ask them for the second ticket and that it never happened to them before.The husband looked wiser and wanted to fill in the form but Mary took it from him and after started writing ,she said " I wish I wrote it in Irish" .Then I got interested as it looked like there is a problem that a Black Paddy had asked for the ticket and started thinking about David Mc Williams' book "The Pope's Children" ,who as potential leaders of the Irish society will have difficulty to read Irish if Mary wrote her form in Irish .While I was thinking I came back to reality when she said to her husband " They come from where ever they come to take the jobs of our kids" -referring to the Black Paddy- and that "he is just being difficult ,and thank God he is not paying the cost of the ticket"-As an actual employee ,I believe Mr B.Paddy pays all his duties some of which goes to the social services which contribute to the care of REAL elderly Irish citizens - and she kept on and on and on about this B.Paddy ending by advising her husband to leave the form on the desk and not to hand it over to such a guy-the poor hard working B.Paddy who would have thought that he is NATURAL enough to be accepted as a member of the society ,but is he?.
I know it is difficult and wrong to generalize from Mary's behaviour and to say it is what every other REAL Mary or REAL Paddy would do.But we need to ask the question why did it happen? whose duty is it to inform Mary of this gentleman's contribution to the society?many other questions came to mind and many other anecdotes came to mind but thank God we arrived at Connolly station and I had to get the Luas to where I live.
