Hi, my name is Fiadh and I am 10 years old. This is my puppy Apollo. I know he doesn’t look like a puppy because of his long legs but he is a lurcher cross we rescued from Dogs trust and is only 8 months old. At the beginning of lockdown he had an accident at home and broke his elbow. I didn’t even know that dogs had elbows! He needed 2 surgeries and was bandaged up and needed rest for 6 weeks. Thankfully he has healed really well and this week we can start walking him again so we are all so happy.
On Sunday May 24 the Covid-19 Feis came to our back garden. Elora is 5 years old and dances for the FeelyBates Academy in Maynooth, Co Kildare. She was excited about dancing at feiseanna in 2020 and was disappointed as more and more events were cancelled. She waited in hope that somehow, she might get to dance on stage. When that didn’t happen, Elora and her7-yearold brother Oran decided they would hold their own feis. For days, she practiced first thing in the morning and last thing at night. In between, she rnade perfectly rounded medals from gold paper. Oran busily and carefully constructed and decorated the Covid-19 perpetual trophy. The day of the feis was warm and sunny. Her Mummy, Daddy and little sister Riona were ushered to the garden
to take up their seats, while Oran took on the role of adjudicator. Elora selected her most decorative dress to wear and took up her place on stage (garden patio!).
When the music started, she danced with the concentration, joy and energy of a lead dancer taking to the stage in Radio City Music Hall. Eight dances later, she nervously awaited the results. Eventually Oran gathered his notes and announced that she was the winner. He presented her with the medals and the coveted Covid-19 perpetual trophy. Elora jumped for joy and clasped her prizes tightly. There was no greater joy in the world than in our back garden that day. Even in small back gardens, big dreams come true!
