Dear Readers, Happy St. Patrick’s Day! This holiday just might be a tie for third place among my favorite holidays: (1) Halloween (2) New Year’s Eve and (3) My Birthday and/or St. Patrick’s Day. Perhaps I feel a deeper connection due to my name that not only means “Warrior Woman,” but Kelly is also a shade of green.
I just love seeing large crowds of folks flaunting all their festive green attire as well as the unabashed kissing! This is why I was delighted that my homecoming due to continued litigation saga to allow my teenage children to travel to my home in Portugal just so happened to overlap with this holiday. Although I’m stuck in this unfortunate court battle, at least I can hug lots of my San Marvelous friends at the big holiday event at my old neighbor’s place, Sean Patrick’s Irish Pub.
My kids and I lived in the middle of downtown SMTX above a law office and tattoo parlor for nine years, and we have a great deal of fond memories dining and gaming there. One of the staffers once told me he had grown up alongside my boys, and it just warmed my heart.
Naturally, it was the gathering place for my election day party back at that time when I ran for office statewide and earned more than 380,000 votes in Texas. #humblebrag It was also the place for my farewell dinner the night before my plane took me away to begin my PhD journey abroad, but Sean P’s will always hold the most special place in my heart for supporting and fostering my comedy career.
They gave me the space and freedom to experiment with my flavor of edutainment, and I am eternally grateful. Seriously, if you missed out on “Crosswalk Comedy” or “Waxed and Vaxxed and Ready for Acts” or “Kelly Stone Does Something Every Other Wednesday,” you really missed some truly magical and ridiculous shows.
I have been so lucky to have this place in my life, but I think luck tends to find me…especially because I look for it. In 2007, my New Year’s resolution was to find a four-leaf clover as I had never found one. A coworker suggested that when I found one that I would need to give it away. Her explanation: It’s important to share the luck so that the luck will return to you. She said it was the key to finding more lucky clovers.
That year, I found 22 four-leaf clovers. I am now in the hundreds. I truly find them all the time. All I had to do was start looking. And, of course, sharing.
I believe we all have the capacity to find what we are looking for, and we also have the ability to share our luck and gifts with one another.
Sean Patrick’s has shared their family, their home, their meals and even their pay-per-view with me and mine. I feel so lucky and honored to have benefited from such generosity and support. I am thrilled to enjoy comforts of home on one of my favorite holidays of the year, and yes, you can certainly buy me a green beer today. I may even offer you a lucky clover, but you best be wearing green, ’mkay?
Sláinte, y’all! Xoxo,
Kelly Stone is an educator, comedian, mother, and author who loves the heck outta the river. She welcomes e-letters at kellystone.org or [email protected] and adores handwritten notes and postcards via good ol’ snail mail.
