A Letter to Oughterard
Oughterard Newsletter February 2004
Barbara Clarke
I want to say I was here
I loved the mythical light of dawn
The night that never came in June
I fell in love with my life here
The unending wind rain wind rain
That told me there is a power greater that me
And that it will win
Let me say
I loved the yellow house where I lived
The cattle that hung around and sometimes
Washed car windows with fat tongues
The flock of seagulls I spied from my living room
Tiptoeing among Dixon’s sheep
The gravel boreen that growled past my door
Bringing anglers to Loch Corrib for the taste of trout
I want to tell you I loved the ferocious
O’ Flaherty’s castle
An ancient ruin sashaying to doom
Like all the ruins in Ireland
I fell for the colour grey
The lacy rock walls the hidden oratory in Portacarron
Before I leave this place
I want to tell you
About my friend Bob who told of civil war
soldiers
Knocking on his boyhood door for a cuppa tea
About a slow recessional for chat with all the neighbours
About his coffin on the guestroom bed
Know wherever I go
I’ll love the spring frost on your tulips and
daffodils
I’ll love your lanterns of fuchsia.
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My three times great grandmother was Hannah Oflaherty and she married Michael Her Connor so looking forward to returning to Oughterard to find out some more info
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