Sir, – Laura McDonagh’s weekend essay remembering childhood holidays in Sligo gave me a wonderful, warm feeling of nostalgia (I brought my three boys from England to Sligo to replicate my childhood summer holidays, June 19th). My childhood summers were also spent in Sligo along with my two sisters. My favourite memories are of eating choc ices, brunches and packets of emerald toffees from the local shop. (None of these was available at the local shop in England.) Red lemonade was similarly revered. My grandma teaching us to milk the cow was a highlight and filling buckets with gorgeous fresh water at the pump was a daily ritual. Locking the church at night was scary and exciting, while ringing the church bells was like living in a Famous Five novel. Hives were an annual occurrence from all the gorgeous, rich butter. We lived with our hair full of sand from the beach in Enniscrone.We moved back to Ireland in 1980. I’m happy to say that my own children and their cousins spent a glorious two months every summer in Sligo with their grandparents, creating many of the same memories. As an adult, I still feel the same excitement when I pack my bag and head to Sligo for a weekend with my parents. Thank you, Laura, for a wonderful, heartfelt article. – Yours, etc,MICHELLE ROLSTON,Whitehall,Dublin 9.