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Dare any of you lovers out there, forget that St. Valentine’s Day, is on Tuesday next, February 14th.
Talking of people in recent history, who fell in love, let’s not forget the sadly unrequited* love story of that great Irish poet, Patrick Kavanagh (1904-1967), and Ms Hilda Moriarty in 1944.
* Unrequited love occurs when one person yearns for unconditional love, from another individual who doesn’t always feel the same way.
It was sometime in the Autumn of 1944, while living on Raglan Road, in Ballsbridge, Co. Dublin, that the poet Kavanagh spotted Ms Hilda Moriarty, herself a native of Co. Kerry, as she wended her way to attend Dublin City University, where she was studying to become a medical doctor.
Ms Moriarty was then 22yrs old, while Kavanagh was some 20 years her senior. For Kavanagh, it was love at first sight, and though she would regarded him as a close friend, her true feelings toward him were never of a romantic nature.
In 1947 Hilda would marry the handsome Mr Donogh O’Malley, a rugby union player, who later served as Parliamentary Secretary to the then Minister for Finance (1961 to 1965); Fianna Fáil Minister for Health (1965 to 1966), and Minister for Education (1966 to 1968). It was the same O’Malley who first announced the notion of free education for Irish students, on September 10th, 1966, unknown to his cabinet colleagues; thus updating Ireland’s antiquated educational system, same unchanged since Irish independence.
Sometime later, Kavanagh was inspired to write the poem, that we refer to, today, as, “On Raglan Road”, published in the Irish Press in 1946, under the title, “Dark Haired Miriam Ran Away”. Kavanagh’s poem was later set to the melody of an old Irish song called, “Fainne Gael an Lae”; (Irish loose translated, “The Dawning of the Day”).
ON
On Raglan Road.
Lyrics: Irish Poet and Novelist, Patrick Kavanagh (1904-1967).
Vocals: Singer, Folk Musician, Banjoist and Actor, the great Luke Kelly (1940 – 1984).
On ‘Raglan Road’ of an Autumn day,
I saw her first and knew,
That her dark hair would weave a snare,
That I might one-day rue.
I saw the danger and I passed,
Along the enchanted way,
And I said, “Let grief be a fallen leaf,
At the dawning of the day.”
On Grafton Street in November,
We tripped lightly along the ledge,
Of a deep ravine where can be seen,
The worth of passion play.
The Queen of Hearts still making tarts,
And I not making hay.
Oh, I loved too much and by such, by such,
Is happiness thrown away.
I gave her gifts of the mind,
I gave her the secret sign,
That’s known to the artists, who have known,
The true gods of sound and stone.
And word and tint, (I did not) without stint.
(For) I gave her poems to say,
With her own name there and her own dark hair,
Like clouds over fields of May.
On a quiet street, where old ghosts meet,
I see her walking now,
Away from me so hurriedly,
My reason must allow,
That I had loved, not as I should,
A creature made of clay,
When the angel woos the clay, he’d lose,
His wings at the dawn of day.
END
American legendary composer, record producer, songwriter and pianist Mr Burt Freeman Bacharach (1928 – 2023) passed away yesterday, of natural causes, aged 94 years.
One of the most important composers of 20th-century popular music, he composed hundreds of pop songs, often in collaboration with fellow lyricist Hal David, which he met at the Brill Building in New York City, and thus began their writing partnership which included:- ‘The Story of My Life‘; – ‘Make It Easy on Yourself ‘; – ‘This Guy’s in Love with You‘; – ‘Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head‘; – ‘I Just Don’t Know What to Do with Myself‘; – ‘Wishin’ and Hopin‘; – ‘Walk on By‘; – ‘Always Something There to Remind Me‘; – ‘What the World Needs Now is Love‘; – ‘What’s New Pussycat?‘; – ‘The Look of Love‘; – ‘I Say a Little Prayer‘; – ‘Do You Know the Way to San Jose?‘; – ‘They Long to Be Close to You‘, – ‘Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)‘ and ‘That’s What Friends Are For‘.
Among his lifetime achievements were Six Grammy Awards; Three Academy Awards; The George and Ira Gershwin Award, for Musical Achievement; An Honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee College of Music; The Thornton Legacy Award USC; National Academy Of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS), New York Heroes Award; and The Polar Music Prize, latter presented in Stockholm by His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden.
In his private life Mr Bacharach was married four times. His first wife was Paula Stewart for five years (1953–1958). His second marriage, to actress Angie Dickinson, lasted 15 years (1965–1980). The couple had a daughter (Nikki Bacharach), latter who died of suicide in January 2007, at the age of 40.
His third marriage was to lyricist Carole Bayer Sager, which lasted for nine years (1982–1991) during which they adopted a son named Cristopher Elton Bacharach.
His fourth wife, was Jane Hansen, whom he wed in 1993. Together they had two children, a son named Oliver and a daughter named Raleigh.
His autobiography, ‘Anyone Who Had a Heart‘, was published in 2013.
In ár gcroíthe go deo.
Lyrics: American folk singer and social activist Peter Seeger.
Vocals: British-Irish singer-songwriter and instrumentalist Chris de Burgh.
Where Have All The Flowers Gone?
Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing,
Where have all the flowers gone, long time ago,
Where have all the flowers gone, picked by young girls every one.
When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?
Where have all the young girls gone, long time passing,
Where have all the young girls gone, long time ago,
Where have all the young girls gone, gone to young men every one,
When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?
Where have all the young men gone, long time passing,
Where have all the young men gone, long time ago,
Where have all the young men gone, gone to soldiers every one,
When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?
Where have all the soldiers gone, long time passing,
Where have all the soldiers gone, long time ago,
Where have all the soldiers gone, they’ve gone to graveyards every one,
When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?
Where have all the graveyards gone, long time passing,
Where have all the graveyards gone, long time ago,
Where have all the graveyards gone, gone to flowers every one,
When will we ever learn? When will we ever learn?
End
Today, February 7th, 2023, is Safer Internet Day. School’s across Tipperary and Ireland will be marking the day with various activities.
The theme of this year’s EU-wide initiative is promoting respect and empathy online. 2023 marks the 20th year of Safer Internet Day and its goal to ensure that everyone experiences positive and safe learning, interaction and collaboration online.
For more information on Safer Internet Day and staying safe and respectful online, please visit: HERE — HERE — HERE and finally HERE.
Upwards of 3,000km of Ireland’s hedgerows are removed each year, and now at last a group of stakeholders including the ‘Irish Wildlife Trust’, the ‘Federation of Irish Beekeepers’, and ‘Hedgerows Ireland’, have come together; calling on the Irish State to protect this richest of ecosystem.
We, residing in Thules, have watched helplessly as almost 2.4 kilometres of Hedgerow in the past 20 months was removed in the town, during the nesting season, with local Municipal District councillors highlighting such removals on social media, in an effort to give the impression that they are hard at work benefiting their electorate.
Despite every effort to call a halt to this wanton destruction, our best exertions fell upon deaf ears both locally; at the National Parks and Wildlife Service and at government Ministerial level, [exempli gratia, Ministers Mr Malcolm Noonan and Minister Mr Eamon Ryan.]
We have watched helplessly the removal of a 150 meters long, 50 year old mature Whitethorn hedgerow, situated east of Lidl supermarket, in the recently constructed new town centre area; the destruction at the walkway on ‘Lady’s well’; and the now totally destroyed historic “Great Famine Double Ditch” at Mill Road, in the town.
Members representing ‘Hedgerows Ireland’, latter a non-profit organization formed to protect against hedgerow removals, has now rightly claimed that such continuing removals could change the Irish landscape, beyond all current recognition.
It is no secret that Ireland’s hedgerows host a rich ecosystem, acting as Irelands rain forestwithin which some two third of our native birds use to roost, nest and feed.
Currently, to our shame and the shame of our present collision government; Irish current rules regarding any hedge removal, facilitate the eradication of half a kilometre (.62mls) of hedgerow, without any environmental assessment or scrutiny.
Some 95% of all applications for hedgerow removal are approved, thus eradicating a huge pollinator and wildlife reservoir, not to mention an area supporting massive carbon storage.
Sadly, their calls; to quote a line from William Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’, will be “More honoured in the breach than the observance.”
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