Francis Duggan Poems

In his youth he was as restless as the silver tongued mountain rill
That babbled on by his home from the foot of the old hill
The wanderlust in his young heart the far off hills seemed green
And he said goodbye to his parents and his younger brother when he had turned eighteen
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I hear the wild birds singing in the wood over there
Their songs clear and melodious in the clear morning air
The children of Mother Nature are welcoming the day
Their songs much like a birthmark to their identity a give away,
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To anyone i have ever wronged in any sort of way
Will return to me in karma for to karma i must pay
For past sins against others there is a karmic law
On your idea on this subject your own conclusion draw.
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When i return to Millstreet it will be in the Spring
When the fields are full of wildflowers and the nesting songbirds sing
And the hawthorns will be laden in their white blossoms of the May
And the skylark will be carolling above the rushes all the day.
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I do not write for reasons aligned to wealth and fame
And writing of verse for me has been a 'hungry belly game'
I am one of those addicted to the penning of rhyme
Though in a Land of free speech that cannot be a crime.
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He was the best stone mason that i have ever known
John Leary of Gortavehy he built great walls of stone
He worked for the Cork County Council and as a Schoolgoing boy
To see him working at his trade a thing i did enjoy.
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Tell me have you ever slept on a bed ridden with fleas
They crawl around your private parts, your stomach and your knees
And in the morning many tiny red spots where they had chosen to bite
They had given you a hard time you had not slept well that night.
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He was born and raised by the mountain and the memories he retain
Of the old fields by the river flooded after heavy rain
And of the cold days of Winter when the chilly winds did blow
And the hill and the high fields by it wore their Winter cloaks of snow.
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They are a special breed of people compassionate, caring and kind
Not paid enough for the work they do for better than them you'll not find
They care for the ill and the dying they have the gift of empathy
Nurses are such wonderful people and a credit to humanity,
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When negative people have power they seek to conquer and divide
They refer to the flag of the Nation as a symbol of courage and pride
A big speech at the war memorial where respect by them to the war dead is paid
By their false show of patriotism their foundation to power has been laid
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