Kilkelly, Ireland

Kilkelly, Ireland, eighteen and sixty, my dear and loving son John
Your good friend the schoolmaster Pat McNamara
So good as these write these words down
Your brothers have all gone to find work in England
The house is so empty and sad
The crop of potatoes is sorely infected, a third to a half of them bad
And your sister Bridget and Patrick O'Donnell
Are going to be married in June
Your mother says your not to work on the railroad
And be sure to come on home soon

Kilkelly, Ireland, eighteen and seventy, my dear and loving son John
Hello to your missus and to your 4 children
May they grow healthy and strong
Michael has got in a wee bit of trouble
I guess that he never will learn
Because of the dampness there's no turf to speak of
And now we have nothing to burn
And Bridget is happy, you named a child for her and
Now she's got six of her own
You say you found work, but you don't say what kind
Or when you will be coming home

Kilkelly, Ireland, eighteen and eighty, dear Michael and John, my sons
I'm sorry to give you the very sad news
But your dear old mother passed on
We buried her down at the church in Kilkelly
Your brothers and Bridget were there
You don't have to worry, she died very quickly
Remember her in your prayers
It's so good to hear that Michael's returning
With money he's sure to buy land
For the crop has been poor and the people are selling
At any price that they can

Kilkelly, Ireland, eighteen and ninety, my dear and loving son John
I'm guessing the time but be close onto eighty
It's thirty years since you're gone
Thanks to all of the money you sent me, I'm still living out on my own
Michael has built himself a fine house
And Bridget's daughters have grown
Thank you for sending your family pictures
They're lovely young women and men
You say that you might even come for a visit
What joy to see you again

Kilkelly, Ireland, eighteen and ninety-two, my dear brother John
I'm sorry that I didn't write any sooner
To tell you that father passed on
He was living with Bridget, she says he was cheerful
And healthy right down to the end
You should have seen him play with the grandchildren
Of Pat McNamara, your friend
We buried him alongside our mother down at the Kilkelly churchyard
He was a strong and a feisty old man, considering his life was so hard
And it's funny the way he kept talking about you
He called for you at the end
Oh, why don't you think about coming to visit
We'd all love to see you again