Returning

Recently I was in knock for a few days. Upon my arrival I went for lunch in the Cafe. There were 2 guys sitting at the other side of the Cafe. I wasn't sure but one of them looked like Fr. Vincent Sherlock. I have never met Fr. Vincent in person. As he was leaving he passed my table but I did not have the courage to say hello in case I was wrong. I paid and left a few minutes after him and his friend. I walked out of the Cafe and walked towards my car in the nearby car park. When I walked out I saw the two men standing talking. Suspecting the one I thought was Fr. Vincent was going to walk in my direction I took my time walking towards the car and stood for a minute looking at the Basilica (sure it is lovely). The man said hello as he was walking past me..... my invitation to take the plunge. Thank God I was right and it was Fr. Vincent. Poor guy had no idea who I was. I think the first question he asked when I told him he didn't know me was 'from where?' A strange question to open with..... I always thought introducing yourself started by saying your name. Obviously when I told him I was from Tullamore he still had no idea who I was.

But then I told him my name and the penny dropped, he knew who I was instantly. While Fr. Vincent and I have never met I regularly read his blog. I stumbled across it a few years ago after a great man passed away. I was so impressed with what Vincent wrote that I emailed him to thank him for such lovely words, the words were not about the man who had died but words from an angel with us to comfort us in such times of sorrow, the man had died by suicide. During our chat in Knock Vincent asked me if I was still writing. I don't really remember keeping in any real contact after my first email to him, I remember 1 email in response to a blog entry last year, but I must have had some sort of infrequent contact with him since that first email for him to say this. Either that or I told him in our first contact that I wrote and he remembered in Knock. I wonder is his memory that good??? Mine certainly is not.

By mentioning my writing that day Vincent reminded me that I had the start of a poem in my head the previous week but because there was no paper I could not pen it. I forgot I had my tablet. As I sat in my room in knock writing it felt great to write again. I had not wrote in a while and as I thought back on it I thought it was because I was sitting with my feelings more and processing. I thought that my writing was an avoidance mechanism but having wrote in knock I thought 'no, I'm processing by writing'. I do not know how many poems/ songs I have penned since I started to write but my poem in Knock was by far the one to impress me most. I did the whole rhyming thing, something I do not do that often in my poems, if I do it at all. But this time I went to a special effort to rhyme every verse, I have never used google so much in my writing. i am so grateful to Fr Vincent getting me back to writing. I know he only asked about my writing but this was enough to return me to writing once which in turn reminded me how much I enjoy writing, i do have another bit of writing in the head. My poems are very personal and I do not often share them but I am so proud of this one I will, it is special. The start of the poem is inspired by a poem I read many years ago.

I Asked the Lord

I asked the Lord to bless you

As I went about my day

To guard you and protect you

In every single way.

Then the Lord He said to me

My child do not fret 

For I walk beside you

And I never will forget.

I always hold my children

Deep inside my heart

They just need to search,

I'll show them where to start.

If their hearts are open

To let me come near

They will feel me beside them

And never will they fear.

for those who have turned away

I do not hold a grudge

For when they are ready

I will give a gentle nudge.

My child, I see you struggling

And want you to know

I will never leave you

Wherever you might go.

The struggle feels real

But you are doing fine 

For you are strong and able,

just flip over the coin.

Believe in yourself my child

For you are well able

You would not be here

If you weren't so stable.

I really admire your strength

To reach out for help 

To overcome the difficulties,

The hardships you are dealt.

It can be difficult

To focus on the good in life

When the bad seems unbearable

And you are stuck in strife.

But always remember my child

I love you very dear

When you walk beside me

Never need you fear.

Be kind to yourself

And love from within

Then you will truly know me

And can share it with a grin.

Melissa Wallace       30/01/17