In 2011, I went with my family to Ireland for the first time.  They had been several times before, so had seen a lot of the country.  My dad planned the trip so I could see as much of the country as possible in a week.

It was a packed itinerary.

We planned to move almost every night so we could cover as much ground as possible.  So, if the weather was bad, we’d just have to take it as it came.

When my dad was planning the trip, he asked if there was any place I particularly wanted to see.  I didn’t even hesitate.  “The Cliffs of Moher.”

Now I gotta tell you that I love cliffs, especially when they overlook the ocean.  Particularly memorable are Block Island, the Isle of Skye, and the Na’a Pali coast in Hawaii.  And I loved them all.  In some cases, I even walked along the rim.  And I really wanted to see these famous cliffs too.

They’re over on the west side of the island.  They’re rugged, and one of the most photographed natural settings in Ireland.  Some famous movies have scenes filmed at these iconic cliffs.  The Princess Bride, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, and Far & Away, among others.

So, my dad made sure the Cliffs of Moher were on the itinerary.  It required a bit of finagling to fit it all in, and still see our relatives in both the north and southwest of the country.  But fit it in he did.  And as we approached I got more excited with every minute.

There was only one problem.  It was raining.  Not sprinkling.  Raining.  But hey –  we had rain jackets.  We were prepared.  After all, it rains a lot in Ireland.

But it got worse.  By the time we got to the cliffs, it wasn’t just raining.  It was completely fogged in.  We parked, went to the Visitor’s Center, and walked up the many steps to the “scenic lookout”.

I’m sure it was scenic, but we couldn’t tell.  We couldn’t even see 2 feet in front of us.  It wasn’t just fog.  It was FOG.  So thick you could cut it with a knife.  We couldn’t see the cliffs at all, never mind the ocean.  They might as well have not been there.  There was a castle at the top of the hill.  We couldn’t see that until we almost walked into it.  That’s how thick the fog was.

(c) AdobeStock Photo. The fog was this thick.

I lost it.  I broke down the crying.  The one thing I’d come all the way to Ireland to see, and I couldn’t see it.  And we didn’t have time to hang around for another day to see if the view improved.

My mom suggested I watch the video in the Visitor’s Center.  She said at least I’d get to see them somehow.  And I bought a postcard, which just made me cry again.  I was upset for the rest of the day, and maybe even the day after that.  I don’t recall, as it seems like a lifetime ago.

Because you see, the time around that trip was when I started noticing the strange symptoms that later became a full-blown illness.  One that I’ve talked about a lot in this blog.  And my reaction was much more emotional than it would normally have been.  At that point, it felt like nothing could or would go right in my life.  Fogged-in Cliffs of Moher were just another example of everything that was wrong.

I had no capacity to deal with this upset, even as unimportant as it was in the scheme of life.  That was my first clue there was something really wrong.  And that it wasn’t our aborted attempt to see the Cliffs of Moher that was really the problem.

Cut to now.  My life has been reborn through prayer, teaching, medical intervention, and a lot of hard work.  My family plans another trip to Ireland.  And my sister asks me if I want to go to the Cliffs of Moher.  “I’d love to,” I respond.

We get on the plane.  I pray for safety.  A good time with my family.  And that I’ll hold what I want loosely.  Even if the Cliffs of Moher are fogged in again.  I pray that I can be present with what is, whether or not it’s what I asked for.  And, on day 3, we drive toward the Cliffs of Moher.

It’s raining again.  Not hard, but enough.  We stop at a church in Drumcliff, where WB Yeats is buried.  My mother wants to stop at Knock to see the shrine.  It takes us a while to park, work our way through the crowds, and see the shrine.  It’s still raining.

Now it’s getting late.  And the Cliffs close at 7:00 pm.  We think we might not get to see them because it might be too late.  Or raining and fogged in.  I’m feeling a bit anxious.  So again I’m praying to hold my desire loosely.  I remind myself that I’ve seen so much beauty already.  If I can’t see this, it’ll be okay.  We’ll have a good time no matter what we do.

But as we get closer, the rain slows to a sprinkle.  Then it stops.  By the time we park the car at 6:15, the sun is peeking out through watery clouds.  It make the light gorgeous, and we see sparkles on the water.  And best of all, we can see the Cliffs!

I’m so excited.  It’s better than seeing Santa Claus as a kid.  Not only because they are beautiful and rugged and wild.  But because it feels like such a gift.  With the rain, they could have been fogged in again.  But there they are in glorious color and I feel as though another part of my life has been redeemed.

I skip up the path.  Walk as long as I can before I think my mom will be wondering where Ann and I are.  I probably took 100 pictures.  (Well, at least 50.)  I could have spent all day walking along the rim and marveling at each bend.  It’s as glorious as I thought it would be.  And as beautiful as the Na’a Pali Coast or the Grand Canyon.

(c) Kathleen Thompson

You want to know what else?  When we get to the Bed & Breakfast, another couple is there.  They say they tried to go to the Cliffs of Moher that day, and it was raining and fogged in. When we ask when that was, it was only 2 hours before we got there!  If we hadn’t gone to Knock, we might have gotten to the Cliffs and not be able to see them at all.  That delay that seemed like a waste of time actually caused us to arrive at the Cliffs at the right time to see them.

My heart rejoices.  Not because this other couple missed the Cliffs.  But because I feel even more that this is a special gift from God.  A small yet important gift.  A tangible reminder of his love for me.

I got the gift of a second chance.  And I so appreciate it.  I’m sure I enjoyed the Cliffs that much more because I hadn’t seen them the first time.  And because I wasn’t expecting it.  I just asked and held my hands and heart open for whatever would come.

Have you ever gotten upset over something you missed, and then gotten a second chance?  If so, share your story in the comments.