Hello bloggers, it's been a while since I last had a heart to heart, but it's been a tough couple of months. Last week's heatwave was amazing and yesterday I climbed Cuilcagh Boardwalk Trail in Fermanagh with a good friend. It would have been easy to give up a couple of times but with endeavour and encouragement we made it to the top. It was a sweltering 26 degrees for us Irish ladies as the sun beamed down.
Today I thought of Fermanagh poets and came across an Enniskillen poem by Tadhg Dall Ó hUiginn on research. He was reacaire to the Maguire chieftains of Enniskillen.
"The role of the poet was a unique position in Gaelic medieval society. Highly regarded, well paid, and extremely learned, they were employed by chieftains and the aristocracy.
Court poets (ollamhs) composed poems praising their patron’s beauty, strength, hospitality and success in love and war. The poems were usually written for special occasions such as Christmas, Easter, a wedding or funeral.
Poems were written in Classical Gaelic according to traditional rules and set imagery. They were composed in a darkened room. The poet shut himself off to draft a complete poem in his head. Only once the whole poem had been memorised, could it then be written down."
from Enniskillen Poem...
Long ere ever I came to the white-walled rampart amongst
the blue hillocks it seemed to me if I could reach that house
I should lack nothing.
I heard, alas for me that heard it, such repute of the fairy
castle of surpassing treasure, and how my beguilement was
in store, that it was impossible to turn me back from it.
I proceed on my way, I reach Enniskillen of the overhanging
oaks; through the fair plain of bending, fruit-laden stems I
was in no wise loth to approach it.
Tadhg Dall Ó hUiginn (1550 - 1591)
On a completely separate note, I thought I'd give a shout out to the Spice Girls whose single Wannabe went to number 1 in July 1996, 25 years ago! My next task is to distinguish between the 'file' and 'reacaire', 'poet' and 'reciter'...apparently there's a lady who knows...
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