If I have made
my mark on you, my child,
and instilled within your heart
any of that brave stuff
which is my essence,
I have done that which I was placed
in this time to do.
If one seed has been planted
that blossoms into knowledge
it took so long to glean;
one kernel of eternal Truth
that arrived in me so late,
my long fallow has ended,
and my stewardship is done.
If eternity approaches
and I return my Brahman spark,
leaving some small word
that I have spoken
to flourish in your life,
then that Spark will glow brighter
for having sheltered within you.
Fair Erin’s shore calls loudly
to her children far away
whose families had to leave her
to keep starving death at bay.
Her siren songs still call us
across these many years:
the echo of the uillean pipes
still brings forth heartfelt tears.
The ballads, myths, and legends,
are taught to us from birth:
the poets, heroes, kings, and knaves
prove well seanachie’s worth.
Though we may not be with her,
we’ve been too long apart,
we’ll always have her with us
within an Irish heart.
—Seamus OFionnain
To each of us
there comes a time
when an action
becomes right:
a time of birth,
a time of death,
of sadness, or delight.
The clarion call
to fall in love,
the urge
to change direction:
a time for each choice
to be made
as we strive for perfection.
For me
the hardest time
of all,
no matter how I try,
is when the clock is still,
and it
is time to say goodbye.
A day never passes
without I contemplate
another wondrous facet
of our love.
I never look upon you
without that sense of joy
you awaken
in my heart.
Your love is a beacon:
the candle in the window
that lights
my way home.
