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This painting was commissioned by the Lucey family, owners of the Gougane Barra Hotel. They wanted a "view of Gougane Barra from heaven." Because the tiny lake is the source of the River Lee as well as a source of spiritual fulfillment for thousands of pilgrims over hundreds of years, I call it, naturally, "The Source."

Gougane Barra sits nestled in a magical—and spiritual—valley in the mountains west of Cork. The site of St. Finbarr's sixth-century monestery, the lake is the source of the sacred River Lee. Finbarr (nicknamed St. Barry, thank you very much) founded the city of Cork in the marshland where the Lee empties into the Atlantic. St. Finbarr's Oratory, a beautiful chapel sits on the stony "island" in Gougane Barra lake as do the ruins of a stone structure housing the Stations of the Cross and several monk's cells built into the stone walls.

For years now, whenever we go to Ireland we always begin or end (or both) our trip with time there, basking in the spectacular scenery, and the warmth and welcome we find at the Gougane Barra Hotel adjacent to the lake.