St. Patrick’s Day is a unique holiday in that it’s one of the only country-specific holidays celebrated worldwide. Every year on and around March 17 people in Ireland, and of Irish descent and affinity around the world celebrate the Irish culture and the partnerships formed with this country. Uganda is no exception.
#UgandaFastFact
Twenty-two years ago the Irish Embassy was established in Kampala. Every year around March 17 people of Uganda come together for the biggest single event of the year for the embassy – a St. Patrick’s Day celebration to commemorate the positive relationship between Ireland and Uganda.
This gets me thinking… with the Irish Embassy in Kampala, is it possible they’ve brought a little bit of luck of the Irish with them? Let’s find out in this week’s weekend word – luck.
luck
lək/
noun
1. success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one’s own actions.
verb
1. chance to find or acquire.
Either way you look at it, luck requires success or acquisition by chance. An opportunity that by chance came along resulting in a success or failure. Remember when we dissected the word opportunity we discussed Roman philosopher’s belief that “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” It’s interesting to note the contrast between his definition and the dictionary definition. Seneca believed that one’s actions had an effect of luck. One must be prepared to embrace opportunity in order for luck to occur. However, according to the definition, luck happens outside one’s actions. Can these two ideals exist and still yet both be true?
I think so. I’d argue while one can be more prepared to take advantage of an opportunity, there are also times when opportunity comes knocking and doesn’t require action for luck to occur.
So, were the people of Uganda lucky when the Irish opened their embassy in Kampala in 1994? We’re sure the opening of the embassy was not done by chance. Ireland seeks to create partnerships with countries around the world as part of both a humanitarian effort and an opportunity to create mutually beneficial partnerships between countries. However, Uganda is very fortunate to have Ireland as a community partner.
Since their official partnership began in 1994, Irish Aid, which strives to provide humanitarian support to end poverty and hunger across the world, has increased their budget from $1 million to more than $16 million. You can read more about the impact Irish Aid has had on Uganda at the Department of Foreign Affairs website here: https://www.dfa.ie/
Wishing You Many Blessings,
Cristen
