A cold north wind and hailstones
And this the month of May
The weather and the times are out of joint
My cousin Raymond died today
At last, for him some peace
He weathered many a storm
Up to this point
His faith was very deep and strong
His love of God intense
I think his very suffering hollowed him
The secret sorrows we never see
I think enlarged his heart
To embrace the joys that then were sent to him
Some years ago Ray sent to me
His personal testament
His review of life and of the hand then dealt
That was a phrase he spoke to me
When losing Margaret
‘You’ve been dealt a cruel hand’
Was how he felt
For Ray knew all about cruelty
About the hurts of life
The way we play the game
And get caught out
But he batted on regardless
And bowled a goodly line
Involved in life and keen
To give a shout
He came to stay with us one time
When Margaret was well
Before her illness came to cause us woe
He met her and he liked her
And on leaving said to me
‘She’s a natural’ and oh
It pleased me so
In his testament he writes
About the ones he loves
And in it there’s a line that took my eye
Holding his mother’s hand
When her time came to go
She told him this ‘don’t be afraid to die’
I thank the Lord for Raymond’s life
He was my cousin dear
Example and encouragement
Friend and good in beer
Always supportive of my life
Wanting me to win
I never knew a better one
Thank God for kith and kin
Brian Fahy
May 2021
Erris Poetry 