Tag: Funeral
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Tales of a Wake – New Book 3
Seamus Curran was a popular businessman in the town and the news of his sudden death came as a terrible shock to everyone who knew him. From every corner of the town and outlying district people came to the house where his body was being waked to pay their respects to their friend and the…
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Paul’s Story – New Book 2
It was at Mick Harte’s funeral that I first met Paul Quinn, a popular and friendly man who was, before this occasion, a stranger to me. Paul, however, had been a very good friend to my Uncle Mick and he had, I was to discover, helped my father’s brother to avoid the full penalty of…
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Biddy’s – Neil Kelly’s Fortune
An Old Tale of Ireland There was nothing nice or polite about Neil Kelly. He simply told his wife that he was going to the forge to get a ‘doctoring instrument’ and off he went without another word being said. When he arrived at the forge he mumbled a greeting to the blacksmith, who asked…
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Biddy’s – saved by a Pipe
“Saved by a Pipe! Yes, by God,” said Charlie Hannon one night as we sat at a wake. “Let me tell you, there’s a powerful lot of strange things to be seen and felt, and don’t let anyone tell me that there’s not!” “I wouldn’t doubt it, Charlie,” said I. Without even recognising that I…
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Biddy’s Midnight Funeral
A Tale of Mystery “Ah, would you be quiet!” cried an old man with whom I was discussing such topics, “Would you believe this?“ “Would I believe what?” I asked him. “It’s as true as I’m living,” he insisted. “I heard it from the man’s own lips, may God be merciful to him! And Lord…
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Biddy’s – A Strange Burial
A Fairy Encounter Many years ago, there lived a hard-working farmer named Liam Mooney, who lived on the borderlands between County Armagh and County Louth. Times had been harsh for many seasons and there was little money to be made from poor harvests. Then, one day, the landlord came to Liam and told him, “You…
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Stories of Seamus No 24
The Hurling Stick This is a story that was related to me by a very old grand-aunt who lived in the heart of Connemara. As we sat by a blazing turf fire she told me that these things happened to a person who was very well-known to her, and so I have absolutely no reason…
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Odd Burial Traits
Deaths and burials are not the most enjoyable topics of conversation for everyone to involve themselves in. But I have often found it interesting to read about the very odd notions people have had about burials and the way that they have been carried out at various times and in various parts of this world.…
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The Wake
From outside the cottage the muffled conversation from the people in the kitchen sounded more like the humming of a swarm of bees. When it became more agitated and voices tried to talk over each other, it sounded more like the annoying cackling of geese in the farmyard. There would, of course, be the occasional…
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Banshee
The Keening Spirit We Irish have the reputation of being very superstitious, but it is rather an exaggerated view. The truth is that we are no more superstitious than the country people of England, France, or Germany. In fact, it has been my experience that the people of the Scottish Highlands are much more attached…
Ireland's Lore and Tales 