When Ireland Celebrates

by Welyson Castro

The sun shines down
The days are bright
There’s freedom in the air
It wasn’t always this way
One hundred years ago
Our freedom then denied
Our forefathers fought
So that we might have a better life
They paid the price
With their lives,
Their futures and their dreams
and hopes were all denied to them.
They gave their lives for us
A blood sacrifice many called it
Never forget the men and women
Who willingly sacrificed themselves
For us, so give a thought to them today
And say a prayer of thanks to them.
We hope and pray that you were awarded
For giving up your life for us.

Written as part of Poetry as Commemoration workshops for Transition Years led by Terry McDonagh and Mary Melvin Geoghegan in Castlerea Community School, Roscommon, in  October 2023.