Sheila and Katie are chatting along Henry Street. A lone crab is trying to find his way out of the cloudy waters of the fish tank in the shop window.
‘Poor thing’, says Katie. ‘Is there anything we can do?’
‘Of course there is!’ One step and they’re inside.
‘Can I buy that crab?’ Sheila asks the assistant coming up from the back of the shop.
‘Not much meat on him’, he says, ‘you can have him’.
‘Don’t kill him now’, Katie warns as the crab is lifted from the water.
‘You’re going to let him off aren’t you? the shop assistant surprises them by asking. ‘You’re going to put him back in the sea?’
They nod.
‘Great’ he says, ‘then you might as well take the other one as well’ and he reaches further into the cloudy waters and pulls out the remaining occupant and pops him into a second plastic.
Off over to the Claddagh then in search of a nice rocky pool at the edge of the tide. When the crabs are safely deposited, seaweed is brought for extra cover but the two escapees have already moved into the shadows of the rocks.
The season of goodwill.

The Green Sod Land Trust-An Fóidín Glas is delighted to announce that it has just been gifted its first acre of land. What a wonderful end to 2007, the year in which the Trust was granted charitable status. This is a very timely donation and we are deeply grateful to Mr. Barry Kavanagh, Beglieve, Bailieborough, Co. Cavan. who out of his passion for land conservation and biodiversity has kindly donated this land. This acre is particularly symbolic as it is the first piece of land to be put under the protection of the Trust. The Trust moves into 2008 inviting others to do likewise.

It is the intention of the Trust to protect and conserve land in every county in Ireland and that crucial start has taken place in Co. Cavan.

In other news, the response to an article in the November issue of Organic Matters has been very promising A number of schools around Ireland have contacted the Trust through the web site in relation to the on-line education initiative ‘The Universe Story’. The schools are taking up the programme which integrates with the Primary school curriculum and the Green Schools programme.

There is a facility on the web site to become a friend of the Trust and by the beginning of 2008 symbolic sod cards will be available for purchase, the money from which will be used to buy land for protection for present and future generations.

Le gach dea ghuí i gcomhair na Nollag agus na hAthbhliana
With all good wishes for Christmas and the New Year.