The Irish Travellers I Envied Poem by Francis Duggan

The Irish travellers I envied when I was a boy
Their wandering existence they seemed to enjoy
About them they did have such a carefree way
'Tis a different Ireland from the one I was raised in today.

In their Romany horse drawn vans they travelled on many a country road
And they did love the life of the no fixed abode
But in the early sixties times were changing fast
And their horse drawn vans became a thing of the past.

Memories of them will be with me until my last day
Around their camp fire at night their fiddles and accordions they did play
They played many an old tune and sung many an old song
And their women and children with them sung along.

When I think of the past I think of them again
And of them and their ways fond memories I retain
They loved their wandering life-style they seemed so carefree
These people who were far more Irish than me.

They loved their pinto horses and their Romany-vans
But the increase in motorized vehicles brought change for the wandering clans
'Tis a different Ireland to the Ireland I grew up in today
But I feel not change for the better allow me to say.