Sustenance for Valour

by Ciaran McDermott

My sanctity tastes like freshly made
Leavened bread, just out of the oven
My sanctity looks like the V shaped
Flock of migratory geese in flight
My sanctity smells like the early morning
Dew’s rising hope
My sanctity feels like a hearth feels
Commandeering as the centrepiece of the room
My sanctity sounds like bells ringing
Heralding a New Year’s Day
My sanctity is at home
When all else fails and the only
Person you can rely on is yourself

Reproduced with kind permission of the author. This poem was composed in a Poetry as Commemoration workshop held at Sligo County Library in October 2023.  The workshop was led by writer Terry McDonagh.