(A lone voice whispers)
I always wondered
In those quiet moments spent on my own
When I was young
Alone in Limerick
How it would, all
Eventually, end
For all great things are so temporal
And my beloved family and
Friends
Are so badly missed
Now I’m reborn as something else
Just one of the many
Dearly Departed
Like Julius Caesar and Cleopatra
We all once lovingly sang together in unison
In our own divine
Red Church
In the Spire of St. Mary's Cathedral
A place I retreated to
Filled with lingering hopes and deep dreams
When everything just hurt
But in the end
Like ridiculous childish thoughts
Golden red rose promises and
All great things
They now
Lay in memory-filled ruins
In here
The Great In-Between
Where the grey zombies
Sometimes surround and analyze me
In these dark corners
As they once again
Live amongst us
The heartbroken mourners
Now just like in
The Quiet Man
Those broken old promises and thoughts
Are slowly been blown away
Softly
But I still stand strong like
A reborn Maureen O'Hara
Entangled forever
Emotionally
Within this southern
Wind-blown dirt
You were so beautiful
My old love
But now you dance
Alone
In that
Ralph Lauren
White polo tee-shirt
I once bought
I was your
Raven-haired queen
And you my only king
But now
I'm just another lost soul
Filled with wild animal instincts
Stuck in a black cloudless
Prison
A kangaroo court
Which finally tore us
Apart
No matter
What I hear
Or feel in here
Wherever I fall short
No matter how hard those memories
Of my old life sing out like rock stars concert
No matter how they all cut so deep
Like a butcher's sharp
Devoted knife
I will always rise
Because I know
I was born under the protection Of The Lady of the Seven Dolours
To always survive even in this
The afterlife
I know I can’t be with you all
And it's not my imagination
Or anything else that calls
Or even me
Playing new games
In here
From the Great In-Between
Where I now live on
Unseen
But just a kind soul
Who tried to be a friend
To many strangers
I hope you all have a wonderful life and shine so bright
With as many names
As you all own
As my time before you
Quickly ticks out
But I promise
I'll take all those stage full of playful memories
We once shared
And keep them safely tucked away
Now I’m on my last journey
Home
You were once all
My sparkling treasures in the dirt
And the darkness
When old childhood memories returned and
Everything
Just felt overworked
I'll see you all so soon
Because I’ll always wait by the
Holy River
Of which everyone speaks
Where I know the Lord
Will bless
Anoint and forgive us
For all those moments we sinned
Whenever we were weak
My song may have ended
But I can only pray my memories still linger on
I was on born on the sixth
Of September 1971
In Ballybricken
County Limerick in Ireland
It’s where I’ll return
If I can
Home to The Emerald Isle
Where I was once laid to rest
I still love you all
And it’s because of that love
I return
For I still feel so blessed
To have this final chance to say
Goodbye
Even though
Deep down inside
My poor soul still cries
(C)
Copyright John Duffy
Image shared under fair usage policy via Pinterest.
An old monologue for a theatre project which covid stopped.
Logline:
What would the dearly departed say, if they got one last chance?
Dolores Mary Eileen O'Riordan was an Irish musician, singer, and songwriter.
She was best known as the lead vocalist and lyricist for the alternative rock band Cranberries.
She, unfortunately, passed over in January 2018.
Would you watch a supernatural film with poetry as its dialogue?
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