By The Blackwater

Dear reader, My name is Tom. It’s the Year 2020 – the year of the pandemic and my last year in Primary School. This year, I was looking forward to Confirmation, not isolation! However, Covid 19 and lockdown are words that became part of our everyday language. Parents working from home, some losing their jobs,

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Dream Life of John Brannigan

Introduction After the formation of the Irish Free State, the Irish Land Commission set about purchasing huge tracks of land that might be offered for sale. The land was for dividing into average small farms – suitable for a family to operate without too much hardship. In most cases, cooperative neighbours eked out a comfortable

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Scéal an tSionainn

Fadó, Fadó, sular rugadh an abhainn is faide sa tir seo bhí tobar ann darbh ainm Tobar Connla, áit ina raibh naoi crainn coill ina seasamh timpeall a mbéal. Lig siad titim bhur cnó síos agus bhí na brádain sna tobar ag fanacht leo. Go leor daoine a chuala faoin dtobar, ó chuala siad faoin

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Sea Legs

I’m not so much a member of the boaty community as a casual acquaintance. I can’t tie the nautical knots and I’m about as sure-footed on deck as a new-born giraffe. At one point, I may have thought the star-board was the plank pirates made you walk but I never turn up without a case

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The longest week on the Riverbank

My great grandad was a great man for oral history. He was born in 1915 and lived in Moydow, Co longford, so his story telling ability spanned for over a century, for he lived until he reached the age of 101 and died in 2016. His ability to tell a yarn was very unique and

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