My Homeland

My homeland

Ireland

shamrocks

while whiskey talks

from one-eyed cats

in pubs

as the church choir

sings 'Bye, Bye Miss American Pie'

in drunken timber.

 

My homeland

Ireland

where the men fight in the streets

once they shut down

their evening haunts

and the girls wait curbside

for their mates

to both care for

and slumber with

at the end of the brawls

in Ireland

my homeland.

 

My homeland

Ireland

where we were once poets,

missionaries-

spreading the words

until the New World

came along and called

some of us away

a journey's throng

to spread these

green eyes

all upon the New Continent-

mother, sister and myself

gaze at one another

with our heritage's color

imbedded in our irises

that of Ireland

my homeland.

 

Ireland

my homeland

where foot and mouth disease

came to plague the masses

most recently-

yet Jonathon Swift

told it best in

the satire

'A Modest Proposal'

'shall we eat our children', he questioned?

In response to the English

starving us Irish

during the potato famine

yet we thrive

the Irish

and the world cries a tear

in their green beer

every March 17th

for their own woes

begging to be secretly

from Ireland

my homeland-

as we love it most.

Dedicated to the Grandma Siddartha Staley Mahaffey and Granddaddy Charles Gibson Mahaffey - May you rest in peace.  I love you!

 

 

Reviews

[Tate Morgan]

A such a ode to the homeland of us all. I love this it is not perfect But the eyes and voice of the Irish lass turns the head of even the boldest of us . Beautiful;

[Arthur Henn]

I have a bit of Irish on my moms side....Another Great. Well worth the awards you got.

[Melanie Jane Boicourt S..]

Hey! I have green eyes. Maybe I have some Irish in me. Just kidding. I know that I am a mutt so it doesn't really matter. I've been told there is even a little alien in my family. Alien as in outer space not outer country. Never mind. I think that your poem made me loopy. Not that I wasn't loopy before but I have got to blame it on something.
I know!
I will blame it on the green beer.
Wait a second. I don't drink.
Love All, Mejasha

[Bear]

one eyed cats... that reminds me of a tale I heard years ago of a cat that drank as heavily as the coal miners regulars of the bar... the cat one day "screamed and jumped high up off the bar" and when it landed, was no longer living. One strong drink to many?
I've always wanted to visit Ireland but, I'll just dream of bagpipers and the hills of the land. Good write this time of year!
Bear

[jenbem]

"with our heritages color
imbedded in our irises
that of Ireland
my homeland."
-great- image.
(it should be heritage's, though)