Nightmares tore childhood from us
Coffins of tomorrow bide their time
My diaspora beckons
And such death was ours.
We crawled, we moved, in chains of bone
America waited
Australia loomed
The shamrock, faded once,
Scattered, wizened, as we passed.
But none can doubt
That we survive
And keep
The memory of race
Displaced.
About the Creator
Marie McGrath
Things that have saved me:
Animals
Music
Sense of Humor
Writing
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Love Letters Through Time
Context: Grace (Gráinne) Gifford, was a participant in the Irish nationalist struggle against British rule, which led to ‘The Easter Rising’, Easter Monday, 1916 in Dublin, Ireland. She was betrothed to one of the leaders, who were due to be executed the morning after being taken prisoner. Joseph and Grace were married the night before in his prison cell. Joseph (Seosamh Pluinceid)) was one of the leaders of The Rising, a signatory of the Irish Proclamation and, in death, a revered Irish hero. These are my imaginings of ‘her’ final words to him. I include a few words in Irish Gaelic as the movement that led to the rebellion favored speaking Irish, instead of English. I would wager a guess, as they were both poets and writers in the Irish republican movement that she would have chosen to marry her love of country with her love of him in expressing her devotion.
By Marie McGrathExclusive • 11 months ago
Comments (2)
This is a poignant and haunting piece! The imagery of "coffins of tomorrow" and "chains of bone" is particularly striking, evoking the weight of history and the human spirit's persistence.
A haunting poem -- of times of hardship and struggles--- very moving