IF I’m being honest, I haven’t looked at a single news story in one whole week and I’m not a bit ashamed of my ignorance – because it truly was bliss.

Easter came off in haze of hyperactive, chocolate-covered children who had a vague idea that we were supposed to be celebrating Jesus leaving sweeties (or something to that effect), before I packed my case with glee on Easter Monday for a four-night stay at the Tyrone Guthrie Centre – a massive manor house in Monaghan which was donated to the Irish state by its namesake as a retreat for artists.

I got into the car with a two-hour Spotify playlist carefully curated to give my journey just the right mix of “I’m going to miss home” and “Maybe I’ll run away forever”, and drove south with my Ray-Bans perched optimistically on my head as if I was expecting the sun to come out as soon as I crossed the border.

However, the closer I got to my destination, the more deeply I experienced an echo of anxiety from my schooldays that I’ve since learned is called “imposter syndrome”.

David Adams: I’m a former loyalist who supports a ‘New Ireland’, but why won’t anyone tell me what it........

© The Irish News