Breatimeacht Flashcards
We all know the proverb; it’s together that we survive
Tá eolas againn go léir ar an seanfhhocal ‘Is a scáth a chéile a mhaireas na daoine’
And it is clear that that was was big in the minds of the people more than 40 years ago when we accepted to go in and be a member of the EEA
Agus is léir go raibh sé go mór in aigne na ndaoine breis is daichead bliain ó shin nuair a ghlacamar chun dul isteach agus chun bheith mar bhaill i gComhphobal Eacnamaíocht na hEorpa
Wasn’t the world that was opening up to us big, with the freedom and the amazing opportunities that the population of this country had?
Nach mór an saol a bhí ag oscailt amach romhainn le saoirse agus deiseanna iontacha ag daonra na tíre seo?
At last we were on the stage of the world!
Faoi dheireadh bhíomar ar stáitse an domhain
For sure we had obstacles, weren’t we competing with some of the most powerful nations in the world; for example France and Germany
Cinnte bhí constaicí romhainn. Nach rabhamar ag dul in iomaíocht le cuid de na náisiúin is cumhachtaí san Eoraip; cur i gcás An Fhrainc agus An Ghearmáin
But ‘our neighbours’ were ready to help us - that was The European Union
Ach bhí ‘ár gcomharsanna’ réidh chun cabhrú linn - sé sin an Ríocht Aontaithe
Whenever the difficulties became too much, there was help and assistance available from Britain
Pé uair a d’éirigh na deacrachtaí thar barr, bhí cabhair agus cúnamh le fáil ón Bhreatain
And them decreasing the problem of emigration and unemployment that was eroding the country in those days and even further back to the fifties
And iad ag laghdú fadhb na h-imirce agus na dífhistíochta a bhí ag creimeadh na tíre sna blianta sin agus fiú níos faide siar go dtí na caogaidí
But now ‘with our friends’ turning their back on us, what is in store for the people of Ireland?
Ach anois ‘lenár gcairde’ ag casadh a gcúl orainne cad tá i ndán do mhuintir na hÉireann?
Not only are we fearful, ignorant and sceptical about the story, but the English are losing confidence as well
Ní amháin go bhfuilimid eaglach, aineolach agus amhrasach faoin scéal, ach tá na sasanaigh ag cailliúnt muiníne freisin
A large amount of them are seeking Irish passports to have the freedom to go across various European borders without much delay or any difficulty
Tá roinnt mhaith dóibh ag iarraidh pasanna Éireannacha chun an t-saoirse a bheith acu chun dul trasna teorainn éagsúla na h-Eorpa gan mórán moille ná deachrachtaí éigin.
In agricultural affairs, a large amount of the farmers are becoming unemployed as you’d say
I gcursaú talamhaíochta tá roinnt mhaith de na feirmeoirí ag dul ‘as gnó’ faoi mar a dhéarfá
Especially those that were selling the majority of their crops to Britain
Go h-áirithe iadsan a bhí ag díol formhór dá gcuid earraí don Bhreatain
But isn’t it ironic to say that they are the farmers from the North, even though they were the group that wanted to leave the EU in the first place.
Ach nach iaróineach a rá ach gurb iad na feirmeoirí ón tuaisceart atá i gceist don chuid is mó, cé gurbh iad an grúpa a theastaigh chun imeacht ón Aontas Eorpach ar an gcéad dul síos.
What about me and the likes of me?
Cad fúimse agus ar mo leithéid?
I know many students and they wanted to attend university in Britain, but now they can’t because the large fees that they will have to pay
Tá aithne agam ar roinnt mhaith daltaí agus bhí ar intinn acu freastal ar an ollscoil sa Bhreatain, ach ní anois ní féidir mar gheall ar na táiile airde a bheidh orthu íoc as
For the colleges that we have in this country are amazing, but would you be able to put any of them on the same level as Oxford or Cambridge?
Cinnte is iontach na coláistí atá againn sa tír seo, ach an mbeifeá in ann aon cheann díobh a chur ar an leibhéal céanna le Oxford nó Cambridge?
My parents the remember the border that was there in the seventies that separated the North from the South and especially the troubles that were there because of that border
Is cuimhin le mo thuistí an teorainn a bhí ann sna seachtóidí a scar an tuaisceart ón deisceart agus go h-áirithe na trioblóidí a bhí ann mar gheall ar an teoireann sin
Will the two sides become rebellious again?
An éiróidh an dá thaobh trodach arís?
Will the long queues of cars return again and them waiting for hours to go or come across?
An bhfillfidh na scuainí fad gleuisteán arís agus iad ag fanacht le h-uaire chun dul nó teacht trasna?
In money matters, We won’t have as much money and we did as a big increase will come on the cost of living with extra taxes on the various products that we get from Britain
I gcursaí airgid, ní bheidh ár bpócaí chomh teann is a bhí toisc go dtiocfaidh méadú mór ar an gcostats maireachtála le taillí sa bhreis ar na tairgí éagsúla a faighimid ón bhreatain
And then there’s the question: Will the other European countries be willing to do trade with us or will our little island on the edge of Europe be forgotten?
Agus ansin tá an cheist: An mbeidh tíortha eile na héorpa toilteanach trádáil a dhéanamh linn nó an ndéanfar dearmad ar ár n-oileán beag ar imeall na hEorpa?
We can’t forget one of the biggest problems that we have in the country an that is the housing crisis
Ní féidir linn dearmad a dhéanamh ar cheann de fadhbanna is mó a bhfuil againn sa tír seo agus is í sin fadhb na dídine
there is a scarcity of apartments available for rent and those that are available have a really high cost going with them
Tá ganntanas arasán ar fáil ar cíos agus iad siúd atá ar fáil, tá costas an-ard ag dul leo
But if more population from the north move here - and there is a good chance that the sorts will happen - we will be in a sticky situation
Ach má bhogann daonra sa bhreis ón tuaisceart anseo - agus tá seans maith go dtarlóidh a leithéid - beimid i bpriacal ceart!
And they will come as they want the freedom to travel over the borders of Europe at their convenience if they have an Irish passport, and can you blame them?
Agus tiocfaidh siad toisc go bhfuil an tsaoirse uathu chun taisteal thar teorainneacha na h-Eorpa ar a socúlacht má tá pas Éireannach acu, agus an féidir leat an locht a chur orthu?
Every cloud has a silver lining as is the other proverb
Is olc an ghaoth ná séideann maith do dhuine’’ , faoi mar atá an seanfhocal eile
And in matter of employment, one hope that there will be more work, or vacancies and jobs available when big companies move there HQs to Ireland
Agus i gcúrsaí fostaíochta tárthar ag siúl go mbeidh níos mó oibre nó folúntais agus postanna ar fáil anseo nuair a bhogann comhlachtaí móra a gceanncheathrú go hÉirinn
They would have to move to a country in which English is spoken as the main language of the people
B’éigean dóibh bogadh chun tíre ina bhfuil an Béarla mar príomhtheanga na ndaoine
Even though many people wouldn’t be happy to claim that
Cé nach bhfuil roinnt mhaith daoine sásta maíomh as sin
Anyways, it is a little too early yet to say how the story will turn out - not only for us but for Britain too, but one thing is for certain; time will tell
Ar aon nós tá s beagánín ró-luath chun a rá conas mar a thitfish an scéal amach - ní amháin dúinn féin ach don Bhreatain freisin - ach tá rud amháin cinnte; “is maith an scéalaí an aimsir”
