In Memory Of My Mother By Patrick Kavanagh

In Memory Of My Mother by Patrick Kavanagh is a moving tribute to his mother by the great Irish writer Patrick Kavanagh.

It is ranked number 12 on my list of top 100 Irish poems which I am updating weekly. It is not anywhere as long as last weeks 756 line poem.

The poem is about a son remembering his mother fondly after she has died.

Written in a way that is understandable, lovable, and memorable.

In Memory Of My Mother By Patrick Kavanagh:

I do not think of you lying in the wet clay
Of a Monaghan graveyard; I see
You walking down a lane among the poplars
On your way to the station, or happily

Going to second Mass on a summer Sunday –
You meet me and you say:
‘Don’t forget to see about the cattle – ‘
Among your earthiest words the angels stray.

And I think of you walking along a headland
Of green oats in June,
So full of repose, so rich with life –
And I see us meeting at the end of a town

On a fair day by accident, after
The bargains are all made and we can walk
Together through the shops and stalls and markets
Free in the oriental streets of thought.

O you are not lying in the wet clay,
For it is a harvest evening now and we
Are piling up the ricks against the moonlight
And you smile up at us – eternally.

Did you enjoy this Irish poem?

Comment below and let me know. Don’t forget to check my list of top 100 Irish poems here.

I really enjoyed this Irish poem and I am sure it will resonate with many of you. I am sharing new poems every week on my email newsletter, the weekly dose of Irish. You can subscribe here.

Thanks for stopping by,

Stephen