As much as I love green beer and Irish music on March 17th, I wanted to take a moment to learn about why there is a St. Patrick’s Day in the first place. Lo and behold, it seems to be rooted in his unique visual thinking and teaching practice!
According to Wikipedia, Patrick (he wasn’t a Saint back then) was a bishop called over from Britain to Ireland in 432. His mission? Teach those pagan Irish the ways of Christianity. How did he do it? With shamrocks!
You see, Bishop Patrick would use the three-leaf clovers, or shamrocks, abundant in the area to teach the pagan Irish about the Holy Trinity. Three leaves, three parts of the trinity. And because those shamrocks were all over the place, it was pretty easy for the Irish to remember what Bishop Patrick shared with them. Pretty clever, if you ask me! And amazing to realize how that visual lesson endures to this day, as we all wear our green and pin a shamrock to our lapels once a year.
Just one more example of how visual thinking changed the world.
This year, to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day… I think I’ll draw a pint! What will you draw?
I can’t wait to see what you draw forth,
