Requiem - Sean O Riada (1931 - 1971)

The glory of evocative visions

Rises up before me,

Unclothed, naked......brutal.

Perceptive was the Mind

Weavomg this fabric of colours -

The crash of the sea against the cliffs of Arann,

The gentle slpe of moist, green hills.

Tall stand the mountains

But.....there is a lonely stillness here.

Stung now, are the eyes

Which never shed a tear,

Pierced are the hearts

Of those, long unmoved -

Dark are the clouds gathering at the East.

The Spirits of Generations are still called back,

When once the enchanted fingers

Caressed the delicate chords,

And eyes as clear as the River in Cul Aodha

Read the printed miracle -

- The life which springs from death -

And the majesty of it all.

Rest, now, a Sheain

I can hear in the distance them chant

Mo Ghile Mear,

Rest with eternal Ruth, hands clasped together.

For a darkness has descended -

The harpsicord long unplayed -

There will, I think, be rain today....................................

(c) Declan J Connaughton 1988,2009

Originally published Maynooth Newsletter June 1988