By Timothy B. Mullen
 

What started out as a wild yet thoughtful idea quickly became a reality when "meself," my wife and my brother and his wife went to Ireland over Thanksgiving time, to celebrate a "true Irish Thanksgiving." It signifies a double meaning because during the last week of November, Americans, including of course we Irish Americans, eat a large oven-baked turkey, squash and cranberry jam and Lord knows what else to give thanks to our forefathers and our history. 

Well, I did the same you could say, except I toasted to my Irish ancestry and thanked them for having beautiful green valleys, rolling hills, great literature and music, Guinness, but most of all, having such heart.

Aran sweaters, Locke's Whisky Distillery, lamb stew, sheep on every hill, an Irish breakfast at every B&B, hot tea and who could forget the Guinness storehouse. What started out in 1759 as a good idea to make a heavy dark beer has literally turned the world into a better place. Now the porter-style stout has become a cultural icon and massive business conglomerate that controls an empire of beer, statistical information and marketing genius. 

Guinness is not only a cultural staple for the Irish community but to the world without any specific geographical territory boundaries because it symbolizes more to the average "Murphy" than a simple beer maker. Just as much as the brown bread, potatoes and Irish lamb stew is for a hearty meal, Guinness has turned into a soul-warming and belly-filling diet for the entire Irish identity. 

Sure, when you think of Ireland so many vivid images come to mind such as: religion, literature, bed and breakfasts, the warm people, golf, music, whisky, four-leaf clovers, art, and a lot of GREEN. But no topic or word depicts the strength and fertility of Ireland better than one, GUINNESS.

Every pub, every store, every logo, every tour and every thought invariably comes alive when you think of Ireland; and you are thinking of Guinness. It is the marketing leader, civic sponsor and founder of an entire genre outside of itself that has turned into a symbol of all that is true and real regarding Ireland. 

Good people. Proud people. Smart and genuine people. People that simply know how to enjoy themselves and have good old-fashioned plain fun. That is why my brother and I and our wives are here. I, personally, have come to the "Auld Sod" to discover my roots and rediscover why I am giving thanks this week during an American Thanksgiving holiday. A celebration to my forefathers, my ancestry, and for all that "being of Irish descent" stands for…I would like to give thanks and perform the act where my actual ancestors were from -Ireland.

My name is not Kennedy and, no, my father did not row a boat from the "Viking land" to America, but I still highly regard my Irish roots as much as anyone could. I thank these roots that I can bear my name, Mullen, proudly and without hesitation as to where the origin lies. Do I mind that I still have not discovered whether it is Galway, Cork or maybe somewhere else. No matter, being Irish is thanks enough. So I would like to raise the glass and say a toast, "To Ireland, being Irish is thanks enough."
 
 

Editor’s Note: Timothy B. Mullen is a former writer and marketing manager for The Irish American Post. A fluent Spanish-speaker, Mullen was International Business Development Manager for Telefonica USA/PR, a $34-plus Billion Telecommunications and Outsourcing corporation in Puerto Rico. Now living in Chicago, he co-founded The Cervantes Group, a technology solutions firm.