Author Archives: tyldesleyboy

The Garden Mass A mass of greenery Green stole about the shoulders of the priest Thick red tablecloth Ready for the feast Mayo colours don’t you know Green above the red Votive lamps and icons Prayers here are said   It’s cosy here a cosy squeeze All the world assembles Send in their messages RequestsContinue reading “In a Garden”

It is the eve of my mother’s anniversary. She died in Westport, County Mayo on 23rd October 2010, just twelve years ago. She was 94 years of age. She was a wonderful woman and the most loving mother anyone could ever have. Her death did not devastate me. The long years had prepared us all forContinue reading “Anniversary”

Luke 12:54-59   A south westerly airflow covers Ireland I often heard them say We know the nature of our weather And the storms around Biscay But can we read each other? Can we know the heart? Can we read behaviour? Where shall I start!   By their fruits you’ll know them By all theContinue reading “Reading The Signs”

When I was ill How did I get well? A tablet calmed by senses That is true But the cure was in the talking With someone there for me And something much much more Than tea and sympathy   Honest talk unravels knots That bind us hard inside Honest talk empowered me To be andContinue reading “Recovery”

Ronaldo is on a mission What will he do now? After years of adulation from the crowd It’s a struggle to discover What lies out beyond The turning in the road The noise so loud   We all must face the mystery of tomorrow And validation comes from deep within Our audience is not ourContinue reading “Life Journey”

I met an old friend yesterday He isn’t very well In truth he so neglects himself He’s on the road to hell   He wanted me to talk to him I did I told him straight I was shocked to see him so distraught The enemy at the gate   I too have been whereContinue reading “A Sight To See”

Night prayer compline Closes each lived day Simeon’s words are uttered He lived to see the day   Out of the depths we cry to you Matins midday eve The voice of prayer not silent Our power when we believe   People of faith send up the prayer For those who cannot pray We areContinue reading “My Brother’s Keeper”

My father kept on living until the end And at the end an ambulance came And he walked out his own door Five days later the end came My father was no more   He lost his spirit for a while When his health broke down Uncertain what happens next On his face a frownContinue reading “Servant of God”

They left their mother They left the family home And went to murky Manchester They left the western foam Nothing there but poverty No future in those fields They had to strike for far away See what the future yields   They found domestic service And then they met a war Kept Manchester moving MadeContinue reading “Leaving”

Luke 12:13-21   This hoard of yours Yes I know We leave things in the end Let go Leave things behind When the time comes to go   All these things that mean so much Mementoes souvenirs Books When I go They will lose their meaning No longer holding yesterday today Just stuff And stuffContinue reading “This Hoard”

  I lost heart I lost the will to live After Margaret died After I had cried I felt alone Deserted What now can I do? The road ahead I could not see This was dead end for me   Now the sun is shining Two grandsons visit me My son I find my mainstayContinue reading “Never Lose Heart”

  We are conditioned people all of us The way the world goes round that’s what we know And in a massive country – America You never know who’s there – you never know   And guns provided answers for security And then became the way things have to be And then became a rightContinue reading “Gun Law”

  Luke 18:1-8   The call to pray The ringing of a bell Sunday morning service Mortal sin to quell Jesus on a hillside Example to us all Forget where you come from Pride before a fall   Internal conversation This our conscious day But prayer demands another Let him have his say Let thatContinue reading “Pray Every Day”

The chubby face The bulky frame The handsome head of hair A comic to his fingertips An actor debonair McGlone of Tutti Frutti Emma’s unlikely guy The man had all the patter Today we say goodbye   I liked him oh I liked him Though I never knew the man Except for what the telly showsContinue reading “Robbie Coltrane”

Luke 12:1-7   To lose your life to violence Is tragedy enough But to sell your soul to the devil So much worse   Think of Adolf Hitler And Himmler and the rest By proposing to themselves an enemy They justified to themselves The terror and the havoc They wrought on others’ lives   TheContinue reading “The Hairs On Your Head”