{"id":448,"date":"2013-12-12T20:23:00","date_gmt":"2013-12-12T20:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/?p=448"},"modified":"2014-09-02T20:25:09","modified_gmt":"2014-09-02T20:25:09","slug":"as-they-lay-him-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/as-they-lay-him-down\/","title":{"rendered":"As They Lay Him Down"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_2833\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-2833\" style=\"width: 955px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2833\" alt=\"Nelson Mandela- set to be buried in South Africa, let us hope the country learns from his leadership, and does not descend into the warfare either on a large or small scale as Ireland did on independence.\" src=\"http:\/\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Nelson-Mandelas-Coffin-ahead-of-his-burial-in-South-Africa.jpg\" width=\"955\" height=\"294\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-2833\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nelson Mandela- set to be buried in South Africa, let us hope the country learns from his leadership, and does not descend into the warfare either on a large or small scale as Ireland did on independence.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>As they lay him down&#8230; Madiba&#8230;<br \/>\nLet them not forget,<br \/>\nForgiveness, what he though them,<br \/>\nFor hatred, now subdued, can yet,<br \/>\nTear the Rainbow Nation apart,<br \/>\nHatred of other tribes and of Whites,<br \/>\nWe seen enough of that elsewhere already,<br \/>\nOn our screens on the news at nights&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>And heard it in our own island,<br \/>\nStories from North Longford I can tell,<br \/>\nOf how hatred bred from history,<br \/>\nTurned a pleasant land into hell,<br \/>\nGrudges of blood and deeds gone before,<br \/>\nIn minds dormant remain,<br \/>\nTo be fanned when times get tough,<br \/>\nMan in a bog lies, killed by slane,<br \/>\nTrue to the principle of sins of the father,<br \/>\nShall be visited on the sons,<br \/>\nSmallest of all the deeds<br \/>\nOf a peoples who negotiate with guns.<\/p>\n<p>Let South Africa not be North Longford,<br \/>\nTransvaal not be West Belfast:<br \/>\nOrange Free State not South Armagh,<br \/>\nLet the peace be real, and let it last&#8230;<br \/>\nLet a distant corner of Africa,<br \/>\nShow the world what forgiveness really does mean&#8230;<br \/>\nWhere colour does not really count,<br \/>\nIn any disputes between<br \/>\nSectors of society<br \/>\nThat lives from hand to mouth&#8230;<br \/>\nWe have enough worries in life<br \/>\nFor mankind to worry about.<\/p>\n<address>GLOSSARY<br \/>\n<strong>&#8220;Dead man in the bog&#8230; killed by Slane&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A local Anglo Irish landowner in north County Longford was killed by a native Irishman in a political row as they both cut turf in the 19th century. His family, who wewont name for fairness to all concerned, still live in the area, as do the family of the man who killed him.<\/p><\/address>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As they lay him down&#8230; Madiba&#8230; Let them not forget, Forgiveness, what he though them, For hatred, now subdued, can yet, Tear the Rainbow Nation apart, Hatred of other tribes and of Whites, We seen enough of that elsewhere already, On our screens on the news at nights&#8230; And heard &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,320],"tags":[115,664,42,665,2342,2359],"class_list":["post-448","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-north-longford","category-south-africa","tag-ballinalee","tag-burial-of-nelson-mandela","tag-longford","tag-nelson-mandel","tag-north-longford","tag-south-africa","column","twocol"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7EI4f-7e","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":167,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/the-wrecking-of-ballinamuck\/","url_meta":{"origin":448,"position":0},"title":"The Wrecking of Ballinamuck","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"11th June 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"In the years before the Famine, Greedy Lord Lorton, God damn the nyeuck* For the love of money and hatred of man Cleared the town of Ballinamuck... Levelled, all bar six houses and church left standing The latter only after a fight, To the cold, the young and old, Had\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;North Longford&quot;","block_context":{"text":"North Longford","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/north-longford\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Village of Ballinamuck in Longford, the chapels spire can be seen which stands on the site of the mud walled church that was saved from the wrecking crew.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/The-Village-of-Ballinamuck.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/The-Village-of-Ballinamuck.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/The-Village-of-Ballinamuck.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/The-Village-of-Ballinamuck.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/The-Village-of-Ballinamuck.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":208,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/madiba-farewell-mandela\/","url_meta":{"origin":448,"position":1},"title":"Madiba &#8211; Farewell Mandela","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"5th December 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Mandela, farewell a fond world bids you, You, who by many names in your time were known President and prisoner, commoner and king, Your home a prison cell, from a Tribal Throne. Yet hatred, it was not your game, Though many think hate your enemies you should, You practiced forgiveness,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Civil Rights&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Civil Rights","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/civil-rights\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Madiba The Late Nelson Mandela South African Prisoner and President Xhosa Prince and King","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Madiba-The-Late-Nelson-Mandela-South-African-Prisoner-and-President-Xhosa-Prince-and-King1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4857,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/sitting-shoreside-by-nabelwy-lake\/","url_meta":{"origin":448,"position":2},"title":"Sitting Shoreside by Nabelwy Lake","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"30th November 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Looking back through photos, a shot of Lough Nabelwy reminded me of one of my favourite walks in North Longford, and of other travels. No matter how exotic where we travel to, there truly is nowhere like home, especially in these concerning times. Shoreside by a Longford lake, Towards Leitrim\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Lesser Known Ireland&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Lesser Known Ireland","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/lesser-known-ireland\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Lough Nabelwy looking towards the Leitrim bank from the Longford Bank","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/writingsinrhyme.celtichosting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Lough-Nabelwy-looking-towards-the-Leitrim-bank-from-the-Longford-Bank-e1606699018677.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/writingsinrhyme.celtichosting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Lough-Nabelwy-looking-towards-the-Leitrim-bank-from-the-Longford-Bank-e1606699018677.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/writingsinrhyme.celtichosting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Lough-Nabelwy-looking-towards-the-Leitrim-bank-from-the-Longford-Bank-e1606699018677.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/writingsinrhyme.celtichosting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Lough-Nabelwy-looking-towards-the-Leitrim-bank-from-the-Longford-Bank-e1606699018677.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4040,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/flickering-candles-foretell-death\/","url_meta":{"origin":448,"position":3},"title":"Flickering Candles Foretell Death","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"6th October 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"A tradition of foretelling a death from North Longford... From the Irish Folklore Commission In days gone by a tradition old Of which the Church condemns though what they are told By clergy the folk pay little heed For superstition and tradition they had a need And so together on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Death&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Death","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/death\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Dozen candles set un a dungpile - the first that went out said its owner would die within a year according to old Longford tradition","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Dozen-candles-set-un-a-dungpile-the-first-that-went-out-said-its-owner-would-die-within-a-year-according-to-old-Longford-tradition.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Dozen-candles-set-un-a-dungpile-the-first-that-went-out-said-its-owner-would-die-within-a-year-according-to-old-Longford-tradition.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Dozen-candles-set-un-a-dungpile-the-first-that-went-out-said-its-owner-would-die-within-a-year-according-to-old-Longford-tradition.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Dozen-candles-set-un-a-dungpile-the-first-that-went-out-said-its-owner-would-die-within-a-year-according-to-old-Longford-tradition.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Dozen-candles-set-un-a-dungpile-the-first-that-went-out-said-its-owner-would-die-within-a-year-according-to-old-Longford-tradition.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4577,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/home-made-explores-concept-of-home-for-longford-writers-group\/","url_meta":{"origin":448,"position":4},"title":"&#8220;Home Made&#8221; explores concept of home for Longford Writers Group","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"3rd December 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"The Longford Writers Group - featuring yours truly - launched their anthology of poems and stories in Longford Library, to the musical accompaniment of Bernie on the keyboard, and Valerie on vocals. The anthology explored the concept of home, as it is known to each of us, and a contribution\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Blog&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Launch of \"Home Made\" - the anthology of Longford Writers Group","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Launch-of-Home-Made-the-anthology-of-Longford-Writers-Group-1024x467.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Launch-of-Home-Made-the-anthology-of-Longford-Writers-Group-1024x467.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Launch-of-Home-Made-the-anthology-of-Longford-Writers-Group-1024x467.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3677,"url":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/long-walk-in-edenmore-bog\/","url_meta":{"origin":448,"position":5},"title":"Long Walk in Edenmore Bog","author":"Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 C\u00e1rthaigh","date":"21st April 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Walking the bog in Longford brought this reflection on life to mind - a rare nonrhyming poem from me! Walking the long way home Brought me to a beauty That I had not seen for years... Having not walked this path Meaning to do so later When weathers better... or\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Environment&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Environment","link":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/category\/environment\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Stack of turf in Edenmore Bog with Cairn Hill in background in North Longford","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.writingsinrhyme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Stack-of-turf-in-Edenmore-Bog-with-Cairn-Hill-in-background-in-North-Longford.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=448"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":449,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448\/revisions\/449"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=448"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=448"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writingsinrhyme.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=448"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}