The days march along
(unintended pun)
And we have now reached St. Patrick's Day
which was always acknowledged in our family
in honour of my mother-in-law's "O'Callahan"relationship.
The smidgin of Irish always added
a little bit of spice to our life,
Charles having inherited much of the
Irish charm and wit.
And that Irish diplomacy that makes it possible
to tell a man to go to hell in such as way that
he looks forward to the trip......
I have great fondness for such Irish authors
as John O'Donahue, Chris Arthur and
Seamus Heaney.
I find many pencil marks in my copy of
Chris Arthur's "Irish Nocturnes" -
a wonderful book of essays...
"thought provoking and immensely readable"
it says on the back cover.
I have given away my copy of his "Irish Willow"
thinking that I would immediately replace it...
(and I shall)
Kennedy in the Literary Review says of his writing
"sheer pleasure, a swim through the waters of
consciousness of a man clearly fluent and knowledgeable in the
essay form, full of information and opinion,
fact and personal observation, a book that rewards
in many ways, virtually in every sentence."
In an essay on memory Arthur makes this observation...
"one of the most hurtful aspects of growing old is the
recognition that one's memory is failing, and it can no longer be
relied upon to cup and transport its precious cargo as securely
as it once did.......... Forgetting a face, a name, an occasion
and knowing that it has slipped invisibly from memory
into nothingness, is to feel the breath of finitude close upon us,
offering a foretaste of our certain future........"
Well, if we are going to be just history then it does behoove us
to make the story comforting and just a little inspiring.
🔻
Time to go to bed now, but I will hopefully awaken
in the morning and be diligent about this task
of making good and meaningful memories for other people, ---
to those who come after us
And that Irish diplomacy that makes it possible
to tell a man to go to hell in such as way that
he looks forward to the trip......
I have great fondness for such Irish authors
as John O'Donahue, Chris Arthur and
Seamus Heaney.
I find many pencil marks in my copy of
Chris Arthur's "Irish Nocturnes" -
a wonderful book of essays...
"thought provoking and immensely readable"
it says on the back cover.
I have given away my copy of his "Irish Willow"
thinking that I would immediately replace it...
(and I shall)
Kennedy in the Literary Review says of his writing
"sheer pleasure, a swim through the waters of
consciousness of a man clearly fluent and knowledgeable in the
essay form, full of information and opinion,
fact and personal observation, a book that rewards
in many ways, virtually in every sentence."
In an essay on memory Arthur makes this observation...
"one of the most hurtful aspects of growing old is the
recognition that one's memory is failing, and it can no longer be
relied upon to cup and transport its precious cargo as securely
as it once did.......... Forgetting a face, a name, an occasion
and knowing that it has slipped invisibly from memory
into nothingness, is to feel the breath of finitude close upon us,
offering a foretaste of our certain future........"
Well, if we are going to be just history then it does behoove us
to make the story comforting and just a little inspiring.
🔻
Time to go to bed now, but I will hopefully awaken
in the morning and be diligent about this task
of making good and meaningful memories for other people, ---
to those who come after us
3 comments:
Probably the quietest and most sober St Patrick's Day since St Patrick himself strode the earth. I once worked with an Irish man who often began his replies "Yes, there may well be some truth in what you're saying..." It took a while before we realised that it meant "I disagree totally!".
God bless and keep you dear Hildred. You've brought tears to my eyes. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing your wisdom and memories.
A very good friend of ours is of Irish descent. Oh, the stories she tells! Stay well, dear Hildred. We're in isolation here in CO and awaiting a snow storm.
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