Last Saturday we were up in Magherafelt. We'd not been with these folk before and on a first visit you're never quite sure how it'll go. When we arrived we were greeted by Johnny. Turns out we had a big impact on his life just over a year ago, through video clips he'd been watching of us on YouTube. It's not for us to go into his story here but it's one of amazing transformation, of a life turned around by the Gospel. He was really excited to meet us! So we spent a fair bit of time with Johnny and his cousin Darren, enjoying the tea, sandwiches and traybakes before we started to play. At the end I was introduced to a 98 year old lady who wanted to speak to me; she pointed to my mandolin and said that she remembered her father playing one just like it when she was a wee girl growing up in County Cavan. The welcome we received was just lovely - warm, friendly Ulster folk. Encounters like this are what keep us going, keep us enthused.
We have wee bit of a breather now, but our next few dates are big ones - the 12th field at Ballygowan, big concert nights at Ballymoney Town Hall and Portstewart Town Hall, and then the Broadisland Gathering in Ballycarry. It's great that so many people enjoy what we're doing.
