Kathleen: The Celtic Knot

A Plan

By the middle of the term, Kathleen can do slip jigs, sailor’s hornpipes, hard reels, and other dances, too. She learns fast because she loves it, and the more difficult the steps get, the greater effort she puts in to master them. The hornpipes are Kathleen’s favorite. She wears hard shoes for the hornpipe, and she loves the leisurely pace and the rap of the hard shoes on the boards. She can let your body go looser, instead of having to keep the top half completely rigid, like in the jigs.

Tess O’Hara teases Kathleen every chance she gets. Kathleen thinks she’s jealous because she’s doing so well. Every now and then, Mrs. Maguire thumps down on the piano keys with her arms making a terrible crashing sound. Mrs. Maguire yells at Tess to leave Kathleen alone. But Kathleen has gotten used to Tess and her carrying on so in the end, she doesn’t even notice it anymore.

Mrs. Maguire had picked her team for the feis by now, and Kathleen is one of the first to get a place on it. Kathleen knows Mrs. Maguire is relying on her to do well. That makes her nervous and proud at the same time, so she simply nods and says that she will do her best.

Brigid was entered in the feis, too, but Mrs. Maguire said she isn’t sure that Tess and Annie are up to scratch. They’ll be given more chances over the next few weeks to prove themselves. Tess and Annie mutter a lot about that. They say Mrs. Maguire has it in for them. Mrs. Maguire only enters people that she thinks can win medals.

As they’re leaving, Mrs. Maguire announces that she wants all of their mothers to ensure they get the finest Irish dancing costumes in Dublin for the feis. They will need to wear black lisle stockings, nice costumes, and green if possible. They should have knee-length or shorter dresses, with Celtic decorations and a brat. Mrs. Maguire will give them Maguire School of Irish Dancing pins specially made in the style of the Tara brooch.

Tess O’Hara doesn’t need to make any snooty comments to Kathleen on this. She knows perfectly well that Kathleen doesn’t have a hope in the wide world of getting hold of a dancing costume good enough to represent Mrs. Maguire. Kathleen stumbles home, going over and over in her mind what Mrs. Maguire had said, trying to find a solution for the costume problem. And by the time she gets to the front door she’s made her decision. She will say nothing to her mother about the dancing costume or the feis. It would only annoy and upset her. But Kathleen has a plan. She’s not sure if it’ll work, but it’s the best she can think of.