Belfast has been enjoying a spell of warm and sunny weather this past week. My office backs onto the River Lagan near the docks and during a break I went to cool off by the river. I was surprised to see, for the first time there, a man fishing and decided to chat. He told me that he was fishing for mackeral. "A scavenger fish," I said. "Not at all," came the reply, "that's a myth. It doesn't deserve that reputation" and he went on to talk about its many fine qualities. He told me that, because of its cleaner water, fish have been returning to the Lagan. He was particularly delighted that salmon are also making their way back with a trap-counter nearby registering a thousand fish. As a fisherman, he was hopeful for the future.
There is a local legend about Finn MacCumhaill and the Salmon of Knowledge. The story goes that the salmon had gleaned all the wisdom of the world and had been given to Finn to cook. While he was cooking it, Finn burned his finger. When sucking on his finger to cool it down, he gained all the wisdom of the world.
News from Belfast has been dominated recently by some racist incidents. Many feel that the actions of a small band of troublemakers have damaged the reputation of the city as a welcoming place.
Like the mackeral, we have many fine qualities and will need to work hard to restore our reputation. We have burned our fingers on the heat of intolerance.
I hope that on sucking them, we get some wisdom and that the salmon will keep coming back.
