It is spring on the Island and with spring comes the
excitement of refreshment. Refreshing
the tired flower beds and sprucing up the exterior and interior with a coat of
paint. There is a lighthouse on Panmure
Island that needed help from its community.
The community garnered some help on a sunny Sunday, when residents
gathered with many talented locals for an afternoon of entertainment, and just
plain fun. It was a fundraiser in the
form of a Céilidh, (pronounced Kaylee), a famous form of entertainment in the
small halls around our fair province.
Combined with a cake auction, 50/50 ticket sales, cash donations, and a
fudge sale, it was guaranteed to raise money.
Young and old found their seats in the little church
hall. Microphones were set up for the
various musical acts lined up to entertain the group anxiously waiting for the
first strains of music. If you were a
fiddle player, guitarist, singer, or step dancer, then chances are you were
called to perform for this event. The
music started and its quick tempo of fiddle and guitar had the crowd tapping
their toes happily in tune. A youngster
couldn’t help himself and added to the merriment by dancing his own version of step. He didn’t stop there. As each act took the stage, he stayed in place
playing an air guitar or an imaginary fiddle on his arm. 
Music today was a universal language,
instigating smiles in many faces. This is community at its finest.
Today, the spring sunshine brought everyone
out of the woodwork to sit and enjoy the fiddles and songs that many could sing
along to. Although ‘set’ dancing involving
anyone who wants to participate is a tradition at Céilidhs, today it was
strictly performances by local artists. Little children, parents and seniors
gathered together in the small hall for the same purpose. Céilidhs are a part of the country culture here
and I expect will be around for decades to come.
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