The Kerrigan Boys
By jove it’s hot on the track today, my flannel is soaked with sweat.
I think I’ll sit in the shade a bit and wait for the sun to set.
I know of a decent camping place by the river beyond the town,
And I’d rather carry my swag through there after the sun goes down.
A touch of pride, well perhaps it is, though I haven’t much cause for pride.
It’s sixteen years to a day almost, since old man Kerrigan died.
Sixteen years and his place is sold and the fortune he left us spent,
For the road down hill is an easy road and that was the way we went.
Kerrigan, that was our father’s name, was one of the tough old sort.
And he held by graft as he held by God, and he hated drink and sport.
We lads were fond of a bit of fun though he kept us under the rein,
And we had to bow to the old man’s will, though it went against our grain.
He was kind enough in his hard old way, but we had to earn our keep,
Driving horses and milking cows, branding and shearing sheep.
No wonder we bucked a bit at times, for you know what youngsters are,
We mustn’t dance at the local hall or drink in Mulligan’s bar.
Well, those were the orders the old man gave, but we did it just the same,
Jack was two years younger than I, so I was the more to blame.
But I’ve often thought had he been less hard and left us a bit more free
It might have been better for him perhaps, and better for Jack and me.
The old man dropped in the yard one day where we had the weaners penned.
We picked him up and we carried him home but we knew that it was the end.
The neighbours gathered from miles around he hadn’t a single foe,
And the crowd that stood by the open grave spoke well of the man below.
We grieved a lot for the old man’s death though he left us wealthy men;
If we had not known what he meant to us we realized it then.
Our only sister had died at birth and our mother was long since dead,
And we found that we were the only heirs when the old man’s will was read
We were just a couple of country lads; we’d never been off the farm,
We’d been held in check from our boyhood up by the weight of the old man’s arm.
Good in the saddle and fair with our fists with a touch of the old man’s pride,
But the neighbours muttered and shook their heads when old man Kerrigan died.
Hard and all as the old man was for years he had kept a stud.
For the love of the horse for the horses sake is strong in the Irish blood.
But breeding was only a hobby with him a sort of a harmless craze,
Though I’d often thought that he had his fling way back in his younger days.
We got mixed up with a racing crowd and started to go the pace.
Forgot the sound of the old man’s voice and the frown on his rugged face.
For the road down hill is and easy road though it ends in a swift descent,
We were only youngsters, a reckless pair, and that was the way we went.
We staked for a win on the Chester colt on the strength of a trail he showed.
But someone got to the boy on top, we knew by the race he rode.
He lost ten lengths and he finished last it was useless to make a fuss,
For the men we met in the racing game were far too cunning for us
We backed him again in the Greytown Cup and he won by half the straight,
But we left our cash in the bookies bags, for he failed to draw the weight.
We cursed the jockey and we cursed the horse, and we sold him there and then.
We’d had enough of the racing game and the ways of racing men.
We could have got out of our troubles still if we put our hands to the plough,
But the life of leisure and cards and drink had got the grip on us now.
You may call it flashness or call it pride or simply a want of sencse,
But the publicans and auctioneers grew wealthy at our expense.
We sat and drank in Mulligan’s pub and gambled the whole night long.
We dealt in cattle and dealt in sheep and most of our deals went wrong.
As long as the banks would cash our cheques we didn’t care what we spent,
For the road downhill is an easy road and that was the way we went.
Then things got bad and a drought came on and it lasted over a year.
Our stock died off and our dams gave out and we knew that the end was near.
Our credit stopped and the bank foreclosed and our fathers place was sold,
For the road downhill is and easy road as the prodigal found of old.
Five years after the old man’s death together we took the track.
I wandered into the nearest pub and I had a drink with Jack.
Then he shook my hand and he wished me luck and I knew he was close to tears,
And I’ve never set eyes on Jack since then or heard of him now for years.
Somewhere out to the west of Bourke he’s humping his swag maybe,
Tramping along in the broiling sun and cursing himself and me.
I’d give two years of my worthless life, though it may not last that long,
For one more look at his honest face, one grip of his fingers strong
Well that’s the tale of the Kerrigan boys and the moral is near the end.
You’ll always have plenty of friend at hand as long as you’ve cash to spend.
We had our chance and we played the fool, it’s too late now to repent,
For the road downhill is an easy road and that was the road we went.
poem by Edward Harrington
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
More Time
The road to the hospital
seemed much too long,
as if we'd never arrive,
or take a road that was wrong.
And all the time I held the hand
of the dearest one to me,
praying silently beside him
so he could not see.
So many things ran through my head
of the years we spent together,
the ups the downs, all occasions
when our hearts were light as a feather.
And now my being was being torn apart.
My very own heart started to smart.
I knew this road and yet I did not.
For each time we took it I forgot
we were saved by a false alarm
as one more time you came to no harm.
For rainbows appear and disappear
and bring me hope again
that we will travel that road no more.
And we shall do everything that we can
to prolong our days in this place
in another timeless embrace.
poem by Edwina Reizer
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Love Is A Long Road
There was a girl I knew
She said she cared about me
She tried to make my world
The way she thought it should be
Yeah we were desperate then
To have each other to hold
But love is a long road
Yeah love is a long long road
There were so many times
I would wake up at noon
Yeah, with my head spinning round
I would wait for the moon
And give her one more chance
To try and save my soul
But love is a long road
Yeah love is a long long road
Some things are hard to give up
Some things are hard to let go
Some things are never enough
I guess I only can hope
For maybe one more chance
To try and save my soul
But love is a long road
Yeah love is a long long road
Love is a long long road
Y eah love is a long long road
Oh, its a long long road
song performed by by Tom Petty
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Holiday Road
I found out long ago
It's a long way down the Holiday Road
Holiday Road
Holiday Road
Jack be nible, Jack be quick
Take a ride on a West Coast kick
Holiday Road
Holiday Road
Holiday Road
Holiday Road
I've come back long ago
Long way down the Holiday Road
Holiday Road
Holiday Road
Holiday Road
Holiday Road
song performed by by Lindsey Buckingham
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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I Must Have Been Sleeping
'Where are you going, ' I heard her say
As the dream took me straight to the core,
We parked at the side of a very long road
And I got out the driver's door;
'I've never known that, ' I replied, and she sat
On her hands, with the pain of surprise,
'So what you've been saying has never been true! '
The tears rose up in her eyes!
'The road has been long, the road has been wide,
I never knew where I could turn.'
'I thought you were happy with me, ' she said;
There was nothing to say in return.
'I must have been sleeping for seventeen years, '
My voice sounded foreign and coarse,
But I couldn't handle the sighs and the lies,
Or the terrible sound of - 'divorce! '
I walked to the wood at the side of the road,
And followed the pathway around,
I couldn't look back now I'd made up my mind
Though I walked unfamiliar ground,
The clearing was quiet, the birds didn't sing,
A mountain rose up in my view,
I suddenly saw there was no going back
To the comfortable life that I knew.
I cast off my shackles and took a deep breath,
To breathe in both freedom and pride,
My strength was returning, and clearer my eye,
I walked with a bounce in my stride,
The years fell away, I was thirty again,
I stopped then, and sat on a stone,
For darkness was gathering there in the gloom
With that terrible feeling - alone!
I thought of the woman I'd left on the road,
Who'd always been faithful to me,
The tears that she'd shed for a love that was dead
Made me sad, and ashamed to be free,
I thought of the comfort she'd given me when
All my world started going insane,
She'd cooked and she'd cared, and she'd loved and she'd shared
And I'd given her nothing but pain.
I turned on the track, and I made my way back
But I couldn't see where I had been,
I stumbled through thickets and walked into trees
And I fell on my knees on the green.
'I am lost, I am lost, ' I cried into the night
Then I heard her voice, dim, by a tree
And woke to her stroking my face and my brow
As I cried… She was waiting for me!
9 March 2008
poem by David Lewis Paget
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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She's Got The Jack
She gave me the Queen
She gave me the King
She was wheelin' and dealin'
Just doin' her thing
She was holdin' a pair
But I had to try
Her Deuce was wild
But my Ace was high
But how was I to know
That she'd been dealt with before
Said she'd never had a Full House
But I should have known
From the tattoo on her left leg
And the garter on her right
She'd have the card to bring me down
If she played it right
She's got the jack, she's got the jack
She's got the jack, she's got the jack
She's got the jack, she's got the jack
She's got the jack, she's got the jack
She's got the jack, jack, jack, jack, jack, jack, jack
She's got the jack
Poker face was her name
Poker face was her nature
Poker straight was her game
If she knew she could get you
She played 'em fast
And she played 'em hard
She could close her eyes
And feel every card
But how was I to know
That she'd been shuffled before
Said she'd never had a Royal Flush
But I should have known
That all the cards were comin'
From the bottom of the pack
And if I'd known what she was dealin' out
I'd have dealt it back
She's got the jack, she's got the jack
She's got the jack, and who knows what else?
She's got the jack, yeah, yeah
She's got the jack, she's got the jack
She's got the jack, she's got the jack
She's got the jack, jack, jack, jack, jack, jack, jack
She's got the jack
She's got the jack, she's got the jack,
Ooh, It was a bad deal, (Jack)
She gave me the (Jack), hey
She's got the (Jack), she's got the (Jack)
She's got the (Jack), ooh can't you tell
She's got the (Jack, jack, jack, jack, jack, jack, jack, jack)
(She's got the jack, she's got the Jack)
She's got the jack, she's got the Jack
She's got the jack, you never know!
She's got the jack, she's got the jack
She's got the jack
She's got the jack, and it hurts!
(She's got the jack)
She's got the jack, jack, jack, jack, jack, jack, jack
She's got the jack
Aaaaaah!
Oooooh!
Thank you, thank you, thank you people, thank you, thank you
I'm glad you like the show, yes, thank you very much folks.
Goodnight and God bless
song performed by by AC-DC
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Heart Beating In Time
Each day without fail
the road would visit the house
(it was the only house the road knew)
and the house too
would look forward to
the road’s visit.
Over the years they became
good friends.
Then one day the house died
from lack of people
and was torn down
until it was only
memory and rubble.
The road continued to visit it
but could only stare into empty space
at the place where the house
had been.
The road was lonely.
At night it talked to
the landscape and the stars
but life was never the same
again.
One day the road just up and died
from lack of use.
Now only the dream
of a memory exists
and the landscape and stars
talk to themselves
and try to remember
what it is...they have
forgot.
poem by Dónall Dempsey
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Coming From The Heart
by Bob Dylan and Helena Springs
We have got to come together
How long can we stay apart?
You may get it maybe never
But it's coming from the heart.
Your life is full of indecision
You can't make up your mind.
We must get it in position
And move it on down the line.
'Cause the road is long, it's a long hard climb
I been on that road too long of a time
Yes the road is long, and it winds and winds
When I think of the love that I left behind.
Make me up a bed of roses
And hang them down from the vine
Of all my loves you've been the closest
That's ever been on my mind.
Please don't talk about tomorrow
I'm really not one to care
This world is filled with too much sorrow
That nobody's heart should bear.
'Cause the road is long, it's a long hard climb
I been on that road too long of a time
Yes the road is long, and it winds and winds
When I think of the love that I left behind.
Please, please give me indication
Stop and talk to me
Like a river that is flowing
My love will never cease to be.
You will always be my honey
No one could take your part
Our love can't be bought with money
'Cause it's coming from the heart.
'Cause the road is long, it's a long hard climb
I been on that road too long of a time
Yes the road is long, and it winds and winds
When I think of the love that I left behind.
song performed by by Bob Dylan
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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To Jack
SO, I’ve battled it through on my own, Jack,
I have done with all dreaming and doubt.
Though “stoney” to-night and alone, Jack,
I am watching the Old Year out.
I have finished with brooding and fears,
Jack, And the spirit is rising in me,
For the sake of the old New Years, Jack,
And the bright New Years to be.
I have fallen in worldly disgrace, Jack,
And I know very well that you heard;
They have blackened my name in this place, Jack,
And I answered them never a word.
But why should I bluster or grieve,
Jack? So narrow and paltry they be—
I knew you would never believe, Jack,
The lies that were said against me.
That is done which shall never be undone,
And I blame not, I blame not my land,
But I’m hearing the Calling of London,
And I long for the roar of the Strand.
It was always the same with our race,
Jack; You know how a vagabond feels—
We can fight a straight man face to face, Jack.
But we can’t keep the curs from our heels.
You know I loved women and drink, Jack,
And that’s how the trouble began;
But you know that I never would shrink,
Jack, From a deed that was worthy a man!
I never was paltry or mean, Jack.
And cruel I never could be,
I will give you a hand which is clean,
Jack, When we meet again over the sea.
I will bring a few wrinkles of care,
Jack; I have altered a lot, I am told;
The steel-filings show in my hair, Jack;
But my heart is as young as of old.
I have faith still in women, and men, Jack,
Though selfish and blind they may be.
I still have my soul and my pen, Jack,
And my country seems dearer to me.
I will sail when your summer sets in, Jack,
And good-bye to my own native land;
Oh, I long for a glimpse of your grin, Jack,
And I long for the grip of your hand.
We both suffered sorrow and pain, Jack,
And sinned in the days that are done;
But we’ll fight the old battle again, Jack,
Where the battle is worth being won.
poem by Henry Lawson
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The Mystery
This is your cup—the cup assigned to you
From the beginning. Nay, my child, I know
How much of that dark drink is your own brew
Of fault and passion. Ages long ago—
In the deep years of yesterday,—I knew.
This is your road—a painful road and drear.
I made the stones—that never give you rest;
I set your friend in pleasant ways and clear,
And he shall come, like you, unto my breast;
But you—my weary child!—must travel here.
This is your task. It has no joy nor grace.
But is not meant for any other hand,
And in my universe hath measured place.
Take it; I do not bid you understand;
I bid you close your eyes—to see my face.
poem by Margaret Steele Anderson (1902)
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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Moving Oleta
Moving Oleta was the hardest thing he'd done
The nurses saw an old woman cryin'
But he saw the love of his life
She don't know where she is
But she knows this isn't home
Love is a hard, hard road
He met her in the summer of thirty-seven
In a brush arbor down on the Rush Creek shore
He loved her black hair and the mischief in her smile
But she won him with her eyes
All the years and children gone
He still sees her the same
Love is a hard, hard road
He woke up and mornin' and drove into town
He stayed all day til her dinner came
Then he took her to her room
Leaned on her wheelchair like a walker
And covered her with a quilt that she'd made
Only God and a couple of nurses
Helped the old man shoulder the load
Love is a hard, hard road
He said "They tell me this is all that's left,
Say this hell on earth is best,
I list all those reasons and I still don't understand"
He cursed his body old and weak
Tears of failure burned his cheeks
He said "Oh, don't you know I prayed to die before this day"
Love is a hard, hard road
There's a shadow much darker than the shadow of death
When you fear the reaper might not come today
They line 'em up in Laz-E-Boys out in the sunroom
The TV keeps the quiet away
She can't recall his name
And she's the only love he's known
Love is a hard, hard road
Love is a hard, hard road
Moving Oleta was the hardest thing he'd done
song performed by by Reba Mcentire
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Long Road
And I wished for so long cannot stay
All the precious moments cannot stay
It's not like wings have fallen cannot stay
But still something's missing I cannot say yea
Holding hands are daughters and sons
And their faiths are falling down down down down
I have wished for so long
How I wish for you today
Will I walk the long road the long road
Cannot stay the long road
There's no need to say goodbye say goodbye
All the friends and family
All the memories going round round round
I have wished for so long
How I wish for you today
And the wind keeps roarin'
And the sky keeps turning grey
And the sun is setting
The sun won't rise another day
I have wished for so long
How I wish for you today
I have wished for so long
How I wish for you today
Will I walk the long road
We all walk the long road
Will I walk the long road
We all walk the long road
Will I walk the long road
Will I walk the long road
We all walk the long road
Will I walk the long road
We all walk the long road
Will I walk the long road
song performed by by Pearl Jam from Merkinball
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Road To You
I spent years chasin' after
A restless wind callin' out my name
I was wild-eyed and crazy
With a spirit that could not be tamed
I had no direction
Lord knows that I've been lost a time or two
But fate was there to guide me
And lead me down the road to you
There've been other women
But all they did was occupy my time
There was always somethin' missing
That until you, I thought I'd never find
Thought I knew what I was lookin' for
But lookin' back I didn't have a clue
All the love that was waiting at the end
Of the road to you
It was worth the tears
And the long and lonely years
That I went through
Id relive the pain for the happiness I've gained
And all the love I've found in you
And when I hold you in my arms
There's nothing in this world I'd rather do
I just close my eyes and thank the Lord he led me
Down the road to you
It was worth the tears
And the long and lonely years
That I went through
I'd relive the pain for the happiness I've gained
And all the love I've found in you
I spent years chasin' after
A restless wind callin' out my name
song performed by by Travis Tritt
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Tradition
Tradition is not a path I know. Set before me is a greatness my family knows nothing of. For none of us has made much more then 30,000 a year. Educational wise college hasn't been a strong suit. But these days I feel its needed especially if one has to rely on themselves. I've seen what happens if you have it too easy. My one sister went down that dark road. I've also seen what one with the smarts to make it all the way but is pushed to hard and treated to harshly. Me and my other sister traveled down this road. But for me I will persevere and do things no one thinks I'm capable of. I have not failed. I have been just delayed. Hopefully soon things will be set in motion that will take me down a road I will travel alone. I have high hopes and goals, that will take years to complete. But its has been a long and fair wait. And now i can put my talents, skills, to a use I've been so longing to do. And I pause for their is so many that I've left behind in the past year. Some because of the way they treated me. Other because of how they treated others. Yet more I met under the wrong circumstances which caused and creative differences. I did not mean for it to happen that way but yet it did. I dont regret any of it. I will always remember the good times. In the end i tend to not value friends for they come and go. But family will always be thier. It is very hard lesson to learn sometimes. But in the end it holds true almost always. With certain exceptions. This is my path of tradition
poem by Ace Of Black Hearts
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Hit The Road Jack
Written by Percy Mayfield
Ah, ah, ah, ah, hey hey hey, yeah
Ah, ah, ah, ah, hey hey hey, yeah
Hit the road Jack and don't you come back no more
Hit that road Jack and don't you come back no more
I said baby baby don't treat me so mean
Your the meanest old woman that I ever seen
I guess if you say so I'm gonna have to pack my things and go
Hit the road Jack and don't you come back no more, no more, no more, no
more
Hit the road Jack and don't you come back no more, yea
Ah, ah, ah, ah, hu-huh, hey hey hey
Ah, ah, ah, ah, uh-huh, hey hey hey
I said baby baby don't treat me this way
I'll get back on my feet someday
I don't care if you do, your just no good
You ain't had no good loving and ....
Hit the road Jack and don't you come back no more, yeah, yeah
Hit the road Jack and don't you come back no more
Ah, ah, ah, ah, hey hey hey
Ah, ah, ah, ah, hey hey hey
Hit the road Jack and don't you come back no more
Hit that road Jack and don't you come back no more, yeah
song performed by by John Mellencamp
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Old Mates
I came up to-night to the station, the tramp had been longish and cold,
My swag ain't too heavy to carry, but then I begin to get old.
I came through this way to the diggings -- how long will that be ago now?
Thirty years! how the country has altered, and miles of it under the plough,
And Jack was my mate on the journey -- we both run away from the sea;
He's got on in the world and I haven't, and now he looks sideways on me.
We were mates, and that didn't mean jokers who meets for a year or a day,
We meant to go jogging together the whole of the blooming long way.
We slept with one blanket between us the night that we run from the port,
There was nothing above us but heaven, yet we took it as jolly good sport.
And now he's the boss of a station, and I'm -- well, the bloke that you see;
For he had the luck and I hadn't, and now he looks sideways on me.
We pegged out a claim on the Dunstan, there used to be gold in them days,
There's blokes that still sticks to the digging, but Lord only knows how it pays;
For the country as far as I've seen it's as chock full of holes as a sieve
With the Chinkies amullocking through it, and yet them coves manage to live.
But when Jack took me to the cradle, the place was a wonder to see,
We washed out a fortune between us, and now he looks sideways on me.
We both fell in love with one woman -- she worked in a pub for a spell;
It ain't the best place for an angel, but angels ain't better than Nell;
For she was as good as they make 'em and hadn't a notion of ill --
It's long years and years since we parted, and seems I'm in love with her still!
But Jack was the handsomest fellow -- I saw how the thing had to be;
He got the best wife on the diggings, and now he looks sideways on me.
I left him, I just couldn't stand it -- I knew it was better to part;
I couldn't look on at the wedding with a pain like a knife at my heart!
I never said nothing to no one -- we didn't whack out all the gold;
I wanted my mate to be happy without my own yarn being told.
So I went to the coast by the steamer, and now I'm the bloke that you see;
He told me to go to the wharè, it seems he looks sideways on me.
There's steps coming down to the wharè -- some other poor bloke on the road;
'Taint nothing to him to get growled at, the boss ain't a bloke that he knowed.
Too dark to make out who's a-coming -- he's crossing the plank at the creek;
The years and the whisky are telling, my eyesight begins to get weak.
What's the odds? it ain't like me to whimper, and all that's gone by had to be,
But the old times came crowding around me to see him look sideways on me.
What, Jack! Why, old man, you don't mean it? You didn't right know it was me?
Well I'm altered -- it ain't for the better -- never mind, never mind, let it be.
O mate, the long years since we parted -- there's a blooming great lump in my throat --
I ain't been as glad, mate, I tell you, since the time that we run from the boat.
You ain't a bit altered -- you're crying -- why, Jack, don't be sorry for me,
I'm that glad that I think I'll go cranky -- and I thought you looked sideways on me.
poem by David McKee Wright
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Hard Road
(h. vanda / g. young)
My mama n papa told me son that youre just a fool
When I told em I was leaving home I was leaving school
So then in a couple of hours I found myself
Heading down that southbound road
With everything I owned on my back
I carried such a heavy load
And its a hard, hard road that I travel
Its a hard, hard road that I travel
Its a hard, hard road that I travel down the line
And its a hard, hard road down the line
Well I wanna tell ya friends
That its good to be a traveling man
cause Im doing what I want to
Living just the best that I can
Nobody putting rings around my neck
To put me in a pigeon hole
Ive got my dog and my radio
To listen to some rock n roll
And its a hard, hard road that I travel
Its a hard, hard road that I travel
Its a hard, hard road that I travel down the line
And its a hard, hard road down the line
song performed by by Rod Stewart
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The arrow's green and I turn left.
The arrow's green and I turn left.
Straight, there's a strip mall,
A dealership, a gas station,
Then the road climbs a hill.
My way looks much the same.
It's the end of the day,
My way leads to you and home.
It occurs to me of a sudden
I don't know where I'd be
If I went straight at that intersection.
10 years and I've always turned,
Never seen nor wondered
What lies on up that road,
Beyond that hill.
10 years:
A clock, an extra week of vacation,
A mention at the company meeting,
A plaque whose veneer started peeling
Soon as I got to the car,
So my face, kind of amused,
Shone reflected in its shiny backing.
It's been a good job, I've worked hard,
And the pay's been quite OK.
At home the 10 years will earn me a 'Hey'
And a laugh about the wordless plaque
That as a mirror might be almost useful,
Then the talk will get back
To who said what to whom at school,
To what happened at soccer that afternoon,
To what your mother said on the phone.
After dinner I'll loaf and watch the game.
10 years it's taken me to notice
I never saw a choice.
poem by William L Roberts
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The Road to Roma Jail
It's a long road, a cruel road, the road to Roma Jail,
birds in all the branches mocking as you pass,
the spiteful little soldier-bird, the stupid old jackass,
crying 'One, two three of them; riding head to tail'.
On the long road, the cruel road, the road to Roma Jail.
Crookedly the track runs beneath the grassy skies
silver shines the mulga, golden glows the plain,
Bullocks in the barley-grass start and stare again,
stockmen at the station-yars, watch the white dust rise,
but one man, jogging on, dare not raise his eyes.
Pride of life and wild blood, all must pay the toll,
stolen horses' mouths are hard as misers hearts
none knew where the end is once the journey starts,
and Steve rides a long ride to reach a bitter goal
where black imps, grinning imps, hover round his soul.
It's a long road, a cruel roaadm the road to roma Jail,
a trooper rides behind you, a tracker rides before,
your hands are tied, your head bowed, your heart and body sore,
and high above you in the blue the homing wood-duck sail,
on the long road, the cruel road, the road to Roma Jail
poem by Vance Palmer
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Fond And Happy Memories
In the middle of February they always came to Annagloor
And parked their horse drawn vans by the by road the travelling Irish poor
They came for the March horse fair in Millstreet Town horses they bought and sold
And a beautiful Pinto to them was a horse worth more than gold.
The coldest part of the Winter is in mid February
And a cold wind blew across the sky in temperatures low as minus 3
Their horses they did not tether on the by road they ranged free
And though that was close to fity years ago those memories remain with me.
And though many Seasons have come and gone since then the memories remain evergreen
Around their camp fire they drunk their illicit booze the stuff known as poteen
And the accordionist played the old tunes and with him they sang along
And they were bound through their cultural links to music dance and song.
Their ancestors were the dispossessed that Cromwells's army had put on the road
That led them to the wandering life of the 'no fixed abode'
Their mothers gave them life in their horse drawn vans and in their horse drawn vans they died
And from birth till death they roamed around the Irish countryside
Outcasts in their own country and homeless and downtrod
But through their music dance and song linked to a greater God
And though they too had their human frailties so too don't we one and all
And fond and happy memories of them I can recall.
Their children and grand children don't live in a horse drawn van
For the late fifties brought great changes to the lives of the wandering clan
Yet by the by road at Annagloor around their camp fire in the moonlight
I still can hear them singing on a cold and frosty night.
poem by Francis Duggan
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The House On Centerville Road
We stopped beside the highway
And gazed at the old house
I told my wife, “That’s where I lived”
When I was just a little sprout
It looked smaller than it once did
Back so many years ago
Even then it was old and creaky
But, as a kid, I didn’t know
Weathered boards were loose and falling
Saplings grew up through the porch
The old tin roof was rusted orange
And the yard looked like a forest
Here dwells my oldest memories
From so many years ago
When our young family lived here
In the house on Centerville road
Those walls once rang with laughter
And the energy of two young lads
Riding stick horses all around the place
Trying to “herd” our collie, Pat
But, Pat knew more than we did
When she’d hear Mama shout
She’d turn us back from the road
And herd two boys toward the house
Dad got a job and we moved to town
Well before I started school
So, my memories are short and sketchy
But, I’ve found there are quite a few
My wife retrieved her camera
And as I turned the key to go
Snapped a picture from her window
Of the house on Centerville road
10/07/07
poem by C.R. Clark
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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