Program 421: Monet's Garden Passion; Ireland's Ring of Kerry; The Carry Home

Author and artist Elizabeth Murray tells how her life was changed by working in painter Claude Monet's gardens outside Paris. Then Irish tour guides take us to the scenic highlights of the popular Ring of Kerry peninsula. And nature writer Gary Ferguson reveals how cultivating a relationship with the natural world helps us better understand life's mystery and beauty.

• Elizabeth Murray, author of  "Monet's Passion in Full Bloom"  (Pomegranate)
• Irish tour guides Stephen McPhilemy and Peter Byrne
• Gary Ferguson, author of "The Carry Home"  (Counterpoint) 

• The Claude Monet Foundation operates his house and gardens at Giverny, which is open daily for visitors from March 28 to November 1. Their website lists the flowers you can expect to be in bloom when you visit.
• The Orangerie was designed for Monet to display his famous "Water Lilies" paintings.
• Rick writes about Monet's Gardens in Giverny.
• The Ring of Kerry's tourism website includes maps and information about the different towns along the route.
• Rick writes about driving the Ring of Kerry.
• Tidy Towns is an annual community competition in Ireland.
• The Journal is an online Irish news organization which documents local controversy over filming parts of the new Star Wars movie on Skelling Michael.
• Gary Ferguson has written 23 books on nature, science and culture, and is a member of the National Geographic Lecture Series. His Wildwords website summarizes Gary's works, and speaking and teaching schedule.
• Gary Ferguson wrote an editorial in the Los Angeles Times about the what the Wilderness Act, enacted in 1964, has taught Americans to date.
• Outward Bound is the outdoor education organization which Gary Ferguson mentions that his late wife had participated in as a student.