Unique Serving Platter

As a descendant of Irish immigrants, I have a soft spot for the cultures of our westerly neighbors. I am particularly attracted to their art and the naturalist elements that are apparent in many designs of the region. I love Celtic jewelry and wear several silver pieces every day. Celtic designs are centered around mostly natural elements, a quality that I love about the designs.

Many Celtic designs are complex and beautiful representations of the world around us. You will often see images of plants and trees in Celtic designs. You can find an endless amount of images of Celtic artistry on the internet. I used the internet to find such images when I was drafting my first tattoo.

I have a tattoo on my back that is a tri-skellion, the Celtic version of the trinity. The Celtic version of the trinity does not relate to the catholic trinity. Celtic designs incorporate the power of three to mirror the natural balance of threes as seen in the life cycles of birth, life, and death. The past, present, and future represent another triplet that is a natural harmony honored in Celtic designs. My tattoo has many elements in it and all of them are aspects drawn from nature. There are a lot of leaves and vines in these designs and I chose the Celtic tree of life to be a part of my tattoo.

Another important characteristic of Celtic designs are spirals. This element is present in almost all Celtic designs and an important part of the art and spirituality of Celts. If you have ever seen the movie Pi, then you are already aware of the implied significance of the spiral. If you have not seen this movie, I highly recommend it as an interesting look at math, mysticism, and the human mind. Check it out. I think I have watched it about a dozen times. I think that I may even own it.

Back to the ranch. If you are a nature lover you will probably enjoy Celtic art and jewelry. If you know a nature lover, Celtic jewelry or art would make a good gift idea. Poesies are short poems that can be found on a lot of Celtic and Irish jewelry and add a special touch to a great gift. Poesy gifts are unique and speak to an innocent romance that I miss in today’s culture. Like the claddagh ring that has been popular in America for decades, poesy jewelry is destined to be a perennial favorite.

Cardboard boxes aren’t just for the homeless to sleep inside of. There are many, many things that a cardboard box can be used for. In fact, with a little bit of creativity and some imagination, an ordinary cardboard box can become just about anything. The homeless people fight over the large ones sometimes, hoping that they can crawl inside to escape the elements of the weather. Moving to a new residence can require lots of lots of cardboard boxes in order to safely relocate everything. A cardboard box can be used to transport anything from plants to groceries, and anything else you can imagine.

Practical uses for a cardboard box just aren’t very exciting. Children can take a box and turn it into a castle or a boat. As a child, my parents got a new refrigerator delivered. The delivery guys took it out of this large cardboard box. I would not let my parents break the cardboard box apart and get rid of it. That simple box remained in our basement for months and months before my parents finally convinced me that it was taking up too much room. But, I had so many adventures inside of that box. During a slumber party, my girlfriends and I were pirates on the high seas looking for treasure. We turned it into a mansion at one time. I slept in it a few times just to see what it felt like to be a homeless person. I ate some snacks and meals in that huge cardboard box. To me, it wasn’t just a box - it was a treasure.

Children are like that. I am amazed at the fact that my young daughter is sometimes more interested in the cardboard box or bag that a gift came in, than actually playing with the gift she received. I should just wrap up a few cardboard boxes for her to play with. She’d probably love it. Not only does she like cardboard boxes, but our cats do as well. After we moved into a new home, we had empty and full cardboard boxes everywhere for a few weeks. Our cats would hide inside of the empty ones until you walked past them. They would pick the perfect moment to attack and try to give us a heart attack. While that didn’t work, they did cause me to jump more than once. My daughter enjoyed playing hide and seek for a while. Oh, the joys of a cardboard box.