I’m not a great one for the Rosary
That repetitious prayer
Those hail and holy Marys
Filling all the air
But talking to Christ’s mother
Is a powerful thing to do
And one Hail Mary said today
Can do wonders now for you
I remember a congregation
Full church on their knees
Answering the Mary prayer
Raising up their pleas
Like people at a concert
Singing all in tune
The sense of solidarity
Rocket to the moon
And rosary beads are powerful
Just to hold that little band
And finger them in silence
Like holding a mother’s hand
Like prayer beads prayed by Eastern folk
Contact the divine
A daily prayer for peaceful days
That all will turn out fine
I saw my father’s rosary
Around his hands entwined
When he lay in his coffin
A strange sight to my mind
He carried them so where he went
My mother said you see
All through the war they went with him
And they brought him home to me
Brian Fahy
16 December 2021
Erris Poetry 