Listowel Connection

This blog is a personal take on Listowel, Co. Kerry. I am writing for anyone anywhere with a Listowel connection but especially for sons and daughters of Listowel who find themselves far from home. Contact me at listowelconnection@gmail.com

Category: Poem Page 2 of 51

A Chemist, a Poet and Jockey

By

On March 3, 2025

In Listowel, Poem

Spring 2025 daffodils on the walk through Childers’ Park

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New Book by Local Author

John O’Donoghue is from Mountcoal (St. Senan’s) originally. He attended Dromclough Primary School and St. Michael’s College. He studied Chemistry at UCC and after a brief spell at Queens University. Belfast, he has been at Trinity College Dublin for the past decade. Dr. John O’Donoghue is
RSC Chemistry Education Coordinator at the School of Chemistry.
Trinity College Dublin. He returns often to Listowel and never misses the Listowel Races!

His new book is a fascinating one.

Onscreen Chemistry examines how Science and scientists are portrayed on the silver screen.

Well worn stereotype: The Nutty Professor
Another scientist stereotype, Frankenstein: the evil monster

John is passionate about engaging young people in Science and has worked on several initiatives to promote STEM in schools and he has led the debate on renewable energy storage.

In his new book, John looks at how the image we have of chemists has changed over time and the myth and reality of the chemistry teacher turned evil drug supplier.

Sounds fascinating.

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Saorstát Eireann Postbox

Text and photos by Michael Fortune of Folklore.ie

Spotted this yesterday – an old Saorstát Éireann post box. I pass it the whole time and said I’d better stop and get a snap of it. These Saorstát Éireann are rare these days and this one’s still in use. This one was made by WT Allen & Co., London and I’d be guessing it’s from the late 1920s. A great little piece of Irish history.

Michael lives in Wexford so I’m prsuming the poxstbox is in Wexford.

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Pat’s Hat is No More

PAT, August 25th 1942 – March 1st 2025

I VISUALISE MY DEATH

I will go down to the water’s edge in Malahide 

because it is time.

Da will be there in the boat.

He will smile.

“You’re coming over” he will say.

He knows.

“Yes I am. It’s lovely to see you.”

“Come on” he will say. “Ta is waiting.”

A smile of joy will warm me.

He will not need to help me over the side.

Everything will be easy.

Da will pull on the oars

and away we will go

crossing over

to the island,

forever

getting there.

.

portrait of Pat by Seamus Murphy

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Unbelievable but True

This jockey’s story has to be the most bizarre ever. Let me clarify something. Even though I found the story on the Grand National Guide website, the race in question here was a flat race in America and before you ask, there was no weighing in back then.

In the world of horse racing, stories of grit and determination are common—but none quite as surreal as Frank Hayes’ final race. In 1923, Hayes, a relatively unknown jockey, rode Sweet Kiss to an unlikely victory. What made this race unforgettable wasn’t just the underdog story—it was the fact that Hayes had suffered a fatal heart attack mid-race, yet his body remained in the saddle, crossing the finish line first.

In a bittersweet moment of triumph, Hayes became the only jockey in history to win a race posthumously. It’s a story that reminds us just how unpredictable the sport can be, where victory and tragedy sometimes ride side by side. To this day, Sweet Kiss was never raced again, earning the eerie nickname “The Horse That Killed a Jockey.”

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A Fact

In 1858, a peasant girl called Bernadette Soubirous reported seeing her first vision of Our Lady at Lourdes.

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My Birthday Break

By

On February 27, 2025

In Listowel, Poem

Áras an Phiarsaigh

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Jenkinstown House

I had a birthday recently and my family treated me to a luxury weekend in this historical but modernised former castle in Kilkenny.

This is just one of the two spacious living rooms where we could hang out as a family, play games, chat and drink.

This is the banquetting hall where we ate our evening meal on the first night and where we held the birthday party on the Saturday evening. I felt like a queen.

My bed for the weekend

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New Shop in Ballincollig

This is Olga with one of her loyal customers, Carine, in her relocated wool and craft shop. It is a beautiful shop for the descerning crafter, full of beautiful wools and craft accessories.

It is located where Snout used to be.

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A Poem on one of my favourite Themes

   Love Continues

Grief is not a fleeting phase,
Nor a storm that swiftly clears.
It lingers, reshapes, and stays,
A silent partner through the years.

The world expects a swift release,
An end to tears, a closing door.
But loss removes our inner peace,
Rewrites the life we knew before.

When loved ones leave, time marches on,
Seasons change, the earth rotates.
Yet in our hearts, they’re never gone;
Their absence permanently weights.

Places once filled with their laughter
Now echo with a hollow tone.
Shared moments haunt us thereafter,
Reminders that we’re now alone.

Some may ask, “Are you still grieving?”
As if time’s passage heals the ache.
But grief is not for our relieving;
It’s love that death cannot unmake.

In grief, there’s strength, a resilience found,
In carrying memories, learning to live.
Honoring what was, while moving around,
Proof that love continues to give.

So let grief be, without shame or fear.
It’s not a weakness to display.
It’s love’s echo, ever clear,
A testament that will not decay.

For grief and love are intertwined,
Two sides of a coin, a single thread.
In mourning, love is redefined,
A lasting bond that is not dead.

Embrace the sorrow, honor the pain,
For in their midst, love’s light is cast.
Through tears and heartache, we sustain
The memory of a love that lasts.

MarkWaldrop

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A Fact

On January 30 1969, The Beatles made their last public appearance as a group.

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Perennials

By

On February 26, 2025

In Poem

Narcissi in Phoenix Park, Dublin…photo; Carmel Hanrahan

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What a difference a year makes?

This lovely picture is on page 4 of Moments of Reflection. The sun is shining and the hens are out foraging among the daffodils. The photo was taken by the hens’ owner on February 18 2024.

One year later on February 18 2025, same old garden and same photographer. The hens are in lockdown to keep them safe from the global avian pandemic that we call Bird Flu. Because of the inclement weather we experienced this winter and early spring , the daffodils are way behind.

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Old Kanturk

This is back in the day when the Fair was a big thing. I am currently reading Niall Williams’ The Time of the Child (highly highly recommend). In it Williams paints a great picture of just such a fairday in his fictional town.

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Catching Up

A great blessing on life’s journey is keeping contact with old friends. This is Margo Spillane who is one of my most loyal and supportive old buddies. We caught up recently in Ballincollig. Always a pleasure!

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Life Goes On

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A Fact

Alligators and sharks can live for up to 100 years.

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Old Shops

By

On February 25, 2025

In History, Listowel, Poem

Grey Heron at breakfast…photo by Chris Grayson

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Shops and Shopping

by Mick O’Callaghan

continued from yesterday

Now I liked this institution (Mikey OConnor’s shop) because when we brought the shopping list into O’Connors on Wednesdays we were always allowed dip into the open biscuit or loose sweet box and have one treat. After the treat the list was handed over to Mikey. He examined it and put it on the Friday pile. He had circular wooden pieces with what looked like a knitting needle protruding upwards and he just pushed the shopping list on to the Friday pile. Then these messages were selected and duly delivered in the van by Big Pat Sullivan, and you paid him the exact amount due in cash or else you paid in cash in the shop next day. Otherwise, there was no delivery the following week. This was our online shopping with very strict credit control.

In addition to the delivery vans most shops had heavy messenger bikes with the big cumbersome wicker basket in front for deliveries of shopping. These were heavy machines to handle and were operated solely by human pedal power in all weathers. They usually had the name of the shop on a plate attached to the crossbar. They could have done with some of the battery-operated machines that today’s Deliveroo people use for fast delivery of take aways. And now as I write these delivery methods are being superseded by delivery drones. Will the next phase be robots galloping around delivering?

I remember in rural Ireland we had the man with the van travelling from village to village selling groceries and this worked well in small communities but was not widely available.

I look at shopping today and I see so many people doing click and collect since Covid times.  People regard it as a great convenience which it really is.

We also have home deliveries which have become very popular with shoppers with instant card payments and online selecting and ordering. It is a fantastic system for busy people where both partners are working or for older people whose children or themselves do the shopping online and have the groceries delivered to their own kitchen table.

I smile wryly to myself when I think that we had online shopping, home deliveries and on the spot payments 75 years ago and more.

I came to Arklow in 1967 and spent my first couple of years in digs which was very settling, comfortable and secure with no shopping required, but times moved on. Our land ladies retired, and we rented a house. Now we had four bachelors who needed sustenance and had to eat. This required the provision of groceries. We went to Jack Byrnes on the Coolgreaney Road which was our nearest grocer’s shop. Now Jack operated a book service for regular customers whereby you got your groceries, they wrote them into your book, and you paid for them on pay day. This suited us perfectly until it came to pay day and dividing up the bill. The list was well scrutinised to ensure no one was doing any extra personal shopping outside the prescribed agreed list of necessary foods to be purchased for breakfast, dinner and supper. It was a great system that worked perfectly well for us before we spread our wings and settled down to more acceptable ways of living.

Shopping has developed exponentially since our barter system was common in Ireland long ago or even more so since the Egyptians used a set weight of gold to purchase goods or since Charlemagne introduced the first standard penny coin in 800 AD.

Life and shopping experiences are constantly evolving, and we must keep changing and continue to manage and adapt to the changes. As Barrack Obama said “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we have been waiting for. We are the change that we seek “

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Memories of Ena Collins

This old image last week evoke many memories for people of a certain age. End, by all accounts was a very pious woman and a great friend of the nuns. You could say she was their eyes and ears in town. She kept a close eye on the convent girls and reported any ‘conduct unbecoming’.

Mike Moriarty has a memory of the shop and the strips of ling ( a cod like fish) hanging by the door. Ling was often salted and preserved for eating during Lent. I remember it well…ugh!

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Keep on Keeping On

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A Dingle Postbox

Maybe this one has been repainted since this photo was taken. In this snap you can see the old red paint coming through.

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You Have to Laugh

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A Fact

A small amount of alcohol on a scorpion will drive it insane and cause it to sting itself to death.

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Shopping

By

On February 24, 2025

In Listowel, Poem

The Square

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Something to Crow About

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An Old Postbox

Image and copy from Old Postboxes on Facebook

This is a very historical piece…the original post box dates between 1911 and 1921…and Saorstát Éireann dates from 1922 to 1937….unusual in that original door was taken off and replaced…. but retained the original logo’s…. Knocksedan Ireland….. no longer in use….

2 Comments

That Edward VII postbox dates from 1901 to 1905; after 1905 the royal cypher was used.

This wallbox has been removed..I believe stolen a couple of years ago….

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Shops and Shopping Memories

by Mick O’Callaghan

I remember Woolworths shop coming to Tralee in the early fifties. There was great excitement at the arrival of this new shopping experience for the people of Tralee. It had a special significance for me because I was starting school, and I was not happy to be held in captivity within the confines of a classroom with a locked door. Sr Immaculata told me that my mother was gone to Woolworths to buy me a present, whereupon I told her that she was a liar because Woolworths shop was not yet open. I lashed out and kicked her. That incident gave me the title for my published memoir ‘The boy who kicked the nun”.

Yes, Woolworths opened a whole new shopping experience for the people of the Tralee catchment area with its array of sweets, chocolates and a wide range of goods. I remember buying my first fishing rod there.

Woolworths was a bright star in the middle of the more traditional shops and institutions around it.

We had Revington’s store selling high class drapery and household goods. It was our Harrods of Tralee. People flocked in there and loved it

There were traditional butchers shops a plenty. I remember Mr Mulcahy in Wilsons Shop slicing rashers to perfection on the slicing machine. Mr Harmon sold loose sweets in paper tósíns, his wine gums were to die for. Yes, and we had Healy’s dairy selling ice cream and dairy products. Oh memories, memories of Havercrofts bakery, of Benners that sold every conceivable household gadget imaginable. There was Kelliher’s, McCowen’s and Latchford’s stores and yards with their hardware, fuel and building supplies. Yes, there is a rich memory bank from our early shopping days, but all is changed now with less local ownership and a huge diversity in suppliers and supplies.

We also had the Munster and Leinster bank with Bank of Ireland close by. They were revered national institutions where all shopkeepers queued up on Monday mornings to lodge the weekend takings. Young people aspired to getting a position there because it was regarded as a safe secure pensionable job for life. The local bank managers were well respected figures in the community. Little did they think that such noble institutions would crash and cause such inestimable damage and stress to the lives of ordinary people. They would also bring long serving businesspeople to their knees and cause national economies to collapse. Irish life was changed for ever by the collapse of the banks.

Apart from these we had a few grocers’ shops, and they had their regular clients. Our grocer of choice was O Connors and Mikey, the owner, was a relation of the family, on my mother’s side. He was a Fianna Fail Politician and that did not sit too easily with my father who was opposed to him politically, but practicality had to prevail because the choice of grocer’s shops was limited, and we shopped with Mikey.

More tomorrow

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Sunday in Ballincollig

I was in Ballincollig yesterday, Sunday February 22 2025.

I was there to support my granddaughter and her team, Lakewood, in The National Cup U14 soccer tournament. They beat Drogheda 5/1 and are now into the quarter finals.

Cora is on the far left, with the headband in Carine’s photo.

While I was in Ballincollig I called to the shopping centre for my newspaper.

This was the scene 10 minutes before New Look opened to begin its closing down sale.

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A Fact

For every human on earth there are approximately one million ants.

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