The founder of the Cuan Mhuire Trust and its rehabilitation centres
all over Ireland, Sr Consilio Fitzgerald, has recently written a
book that encourages readers to reconnect with their spirituality.Entitled The Harbour Within, the book examines how, in today’s busy world, we can get caught up with the worries and stresses of life. We live in our heads, as we move at lightning pace from one thing to the next.
In The Harbour Within, Sister Consilio suggests how we can live happier and more peaceful lives by learning to live from the soul instead of our heads.
From a seven-day guide to living at soul level, to thoughts and inspirations to carry us through difficult times, The Harbour Within shows us how we can discover a place of peace, unconditional love and joy – a harbour within.
“When we move out of our heads and begin to live at soul level, we open ourselves to a life with unconditional love: one that strives to reach beyond thought, expectation, emotion and feeling,” says Sister Consilio.
A native of Brosna in County Kerry and a qualified nurse, Sr Consilio, who is a Sister of Mercy, established the first Cuan Mhuire centre fifty years ago in order to help those she witnessed battling with addiction.
Since then, over 75,000 people have been treated in the five centres across Ireland, making Cuan Mhuire the largest provider of rehabilitation services in the country.
Sr Concilio has accepted numerous awards for the organisation.
In 2011 she was awarded an honorary MBE by Queen Elizabeth II in recognition of her lifelong work in helping individuals and families suffering from alcoholism and other addictions.
Described by RTÉ presenter Miriam O’Callaghan as “the living embodiment of wisdom and kindness”, Sr Consilio has spent years imparting her wisdom and faith upon all those she has met in her line of work. Now she aims to share her message with the public through her book, which she hopes will offer guidance and inspiration to all its readers.
The book, which retails at €17.50, is now in bookshops across the country. All royalties from the sale support the cause of the Cuan Mhuire rehabilitation centres.
Among the locations of Cuan Mhuire centres in Ireland are Athy, Athenry, Bruree, Ballincollig and Newry.
There are also transition houses in Dublin, Galway and Limerick.