Posted by Jerry Mulvihill
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Crown of Thorns by John Mulvihill
I walked the road again today For I have nothing else to do.
I leave behind the smoking ruins Of the evicted and the poor, Their lives laid bare to the elements And whatever comes their way.
I passed a woman stretched in a ditch Between the rushes and the furze. She had three small children by her side, I cast a quick glance on her face. She caught my eye and said
Take my children, take my children.
I blessed myself and walked away.
I saw her pale, pale face and sunken eyes as I walked on along the road I cursed myself and Ireland for we were of no use.
I wondered who she was, and where she came from How sad it was for me today to have met this family.
A woman stripped of motherhood and Mother Nature’s way But she and they, like me, fell victims to the crown.
Our nearest neighbour so strong and fierce, will starve us to the clay. One woman wears a crown of jewels the other a crown of thorns.
From The Truth Behind The Irish Famine available here: www.jerrymulvihill.com
Who Watches the Watchers? 