»
Archives
»
Open Poetry #9
»
Coach the Piper ( old Irish poem ) ... pippa
| Open Poetry #9 |
|
Coach the Piper ( old Irish poem ) ... pippa |
|
|
Rex Allen McCoy Member Elite
since 2000-01-30
Posts 2863Sippin a Timmy's in London 
|
Pippa ... this is an Old Irish Poem ... if I run across anything Scottish pertaining to the passing of a loved one ... I'll post it Coach the Piper ~~~ One winters day long long ago when I was a little fellow A piper wandered to our door gray headed blind and yellow And oh how glad was my young heart though earth and sky looked dreary To see the stranger and his dog poor "Pinch" and Coach O'Leary ~ And when he stowed away his "bag" cross-barred with green and yellow I thought and said "In Ireland's ground there's not so fine a fellow" And Fineen and Shane Machree and Eily Kate and Mary Rushed in with panting haste to "see" and "welcome" Coach O'Leary ~ Oh! god be with those happy times Oh! god be with my childhood When I bare headed roamed all day bird nesting in the wildwood I'll not forget those sunny hours how ever years may vary I'll not forget my early friends Nor honest Coach O'Leary ~ Poor Coach and "Pinch" slept well that night and in the morning early He called me up to hear him play "The wind that shakes the barley" And then he stroked my flaxen hair and cried "God mark my Deary" And how I wept when he said "fairwell and think of Coach O'Leary" ~ The seasons came and went and still old Coach was not forgotten Although I thought him "dead and gone" and in the cold clay rotten And often when I walked and danced with Eily Kate and Mary We spoke of childhood's rosy hours and prayed for Coach O'Leary ~ All twenty summers had gone past and Junes red sun was shining When I a man sat by my door of twenty sad things thinking A little dog came up the way his gait was slow and weary And at his tail a lame man limped 'Twas "Pinch" and Coach O'Leary ~ Old Coach! but ah! how woe-begone his form is bowed and bending His fleshless hands are stiff and wan aye time is ever blending the colors on his thread bare "bag" and "pinch" is twice as hairy And "thin spare" as when first I saw himself and Coach O'Leary ~ "God blessing here" the wanderer cried far far be Hell's black viper Does anybody here abouts remember Coach the Piper With swelling heart I grasped his hand the old man murmured "Deary" Are you the silky headed child that loved poor Coach O'Leary ~ "Yes yes" I said, the wanderer wept as if his heart was breaking "And where a'vhic machree" he sobbed is all the merry making I found here twenty years ago "My tale" I sighed "might weary" Enough to say there's non but me to welcome Coach O'Leary ~ "No no no" the old man cried and wrung his hands in sorrow "Pray lead me in Arther Machree and I'll go home tomorrow My peace is made- I'll calmly leave this world so cold and dreary And you shall keep my Pipes and Dog and pray for Coach O'Leary" ~ With "Pinch" I watched his bed that night next day his wish was granted He died and Father James was brought and the Requiem Mass was chanted The neighbors came we dug his grave near Eily Kate and Mary And there he sleeps his last long sleep God rest you Coach O'Leary ~~~ author unknown [This message has been edited by Rex Allen McCoy (edited 09-17-2000).] |
||
| © Copyright 2000 Rex Allen McCoy - All Rights Reserved | |||
Marsha
since 2000-07-10
Posts 7423Maidstone Kent England |
Rex, this is such a moving poem. It captured me and led me onward, amazingly I could hear the pipes and see the old Coach O'Leary. Beautifully written, as always. Love this, you can tell I know! |
||
|
Rex Allen McCoy Member Elite
since 2000-01-30
Posts 2863Sippin a Timmy's in London |
Sorry Marsha ... I can't take the credit for this one ... not sure who wrote it ... Pippa is looking for a Scottish poem suitable to be read at a funeral ... Just trying to help out  |
||
|
Irish Rose Member Patricius
since 2000-04-06
Posts 10263 |
Bravo! I love it! Kathleen |
||
|
tracie66 Member Elite
since 2000-01-18
Posts 4713Australia |
Dear Rex Thanks for sharing this wonderful piece of Irish poetry Tracie~ Love is the life of the soul... It is the harmony of the universe |
||
|
michael kenny New Member
since 2010-11-22
Posts 2 |
Just one thing , dear friend, regarding 'pinch and caoch oleary'. Caoch is an irish word meaning 'blind'. A rough phoenetic approximation might be 'caoyuk'. Have fun with that one..... |
||
|
michael kenny New Member
since 2010-11-22
Posts 2 |
ooops. forgot to mention that 'pinch and caoch oleary' was written by John Keegan 1809-1849, who was a regular contributor to 'the Nation' newspaper which was founded by Thomas Davis from Mallow in county cork, and was the mouthpiece of the Young Ireland movement in those days. Keegan himself died of T.B. I can give much more on that topic if you wish. |
||
|
|
⇧ top of page ⇧ |
|
| All times are ET (US). All dates are in Year-Month-Day format. | ||
