Your prayers are asked for the following
Who are sick…
And for the following lately dead…
And those whose anniversaries
Occur about this time….
We sat in our rows
And listened as the priest
Up in the pulpit
Read out recited all the names
Sick and lately dead
And anniversaries
Names familiar sounding to us all
For this is our parish family
And all of us belong
‘To-one-another’
Gone but not forgotten
November time
A special mass is said
The month of Holy Souls
Dead and gone ahead
And we shall follow
The church the school
Evening benediction
Women’s Guild
The Young Men’s
Altar Boys society
Weekly routines
Cycle of the year
Christmas Lent and Easter
May procession
A powerful world it grabbed you
Kept you close
Cajoled consoled
Promised future glory
And all around the mines and mills
Kept clanging
Demanding daily labour
Mouths to feed
Wanderers on Saturday
Or maybe rugby league
And vote in Labour
When the time comes round
All gone now
That way of life
That church
That industry
That kept us all together
And what’s all this!
They’ve gone and voted Tory!
Well well well
Never can tell with weather…
Brian Fahy
4 June 2021
Erris Poetry 