Francis Duggan Poems

The roads of life keep winding up and down
They take us to obscurity and renown
It is a journey we must undertake
And along the way there's joy and there's heartbreak.
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Of the horrors of war we hear every day
And of death and destruction in cities far away
And any lesson it would seem not learned from the past
And mistrust and enmity for centuries last.
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Happy childhood memories the best memories of all
And my younger years in Millstreet I will always recall
On evenings in Summer up to the mid Fall
In the Townpark at the West End we played gaelic football
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With a forecast high of twenty one degrees
A beautiful evening of sunshine and breeze
On the trees and bushes birds whistle and sing
With only five days left of the calendar Spring
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It may not be any of those you drink with in the bar
When you are in trouble you'll know who your friends are,
Your friends will not desert you in your time of need
Just like it is said such friends are friends indeed,
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As the moon at midnight moves through the starry sky
Out there in the bog land the Banshee's shrill cry
The one seldom heard and that human eyes cannot see
Some say the ghost of one who died in agony.
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Oppressive regimes of the World to violence too inclined
And they punish everybody with the courage to speak their mind
I toast all Governments who allow free speech for that's democracy
Though far from perfect it does seem their citizens are free
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'Tis said that he died with a smile on his face
Though laughter in his life did not have a place
In his ninetieth year he enjoyed a long span
The one who was known as 'the grumpy old man'.
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I always feel disappointed when of racism I read
And when I read of it in Ireland I feel very sad indeed
For racism in society should never have a place
And people should never be judged on their colour or their race.
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The World's many billion people controlled by the greedy few
But to every billionaire there is there are a million who
Go to sleep weak and hungry their wasted bodies thin
For days they haven't eaten their bones showing through their skin.
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