You Take the Sea; I'll Take the Land

You Take the Sea; I’ll Take the Land.

            

Then, growing cautious of air currents,

my ears will extend to points,

nose become a snout, eyes flinty.

I will grow a coat of hair to thwart the wind,

jointed limbs that angle to take a fall.

Your sides will be sleek to cut the water,

your face an arrow, even eye-lids planed to nothing.

Your skin will have the dapples of flowing liquid,

drop-shaped scales. By then, of course,

we will not know each other at all.

Irish steps and places very much alive in the U.S.

While browsing the net, looking through Irish  place-names that have been exported to America, I landed on some footage of a four-year Irish dancer, Oscar Donnelly,  performing the set dance the Kilkenny Races at a speed that would likely win the Kilkenny races. Take a look: http://www.irishcentral.com/culture/craic/4-year-old-Irish-dancer-could-be-the-worlds-next-Michael-Flatley-VIDEO.html          Prodigious, I'm guessing, we'll hear the name again..

Back to the place-names, I was checking out County Roscommon, only to find counties Clare, Wexford and Antrim also exist in Michigan. Apparently there are 21 Dublin towns is the U.S. and Galway town is in Saratoga County, New York as is Waterford town.  There are a number of Limericks, Kildares; Baltimore of course, Newry, Tyrone,  Killarney, Mayo, Letterkenny, Kilkenny, Bantry, lots of Avocas, Derry, Londonderry, Duncannon, Dundalk and many more. Not surprising, I suppose, as immigrants tried to cling to a little bit of home. There’s a list of Irish place-names abroad at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Irish_place_names_in_other_countries#Placenames_by_Irish_county

I'm particularly struck by the Killarney in Zimbabwe, listed on this page, not to mention Conamara in outer space. Let’s hope the Gaelic language is holding up out there.

Mind you it’s not been all one way, there’s a very small Boston in Co. Clare, and, very impressively, America sits snuggly, a townland in Co Roscommon.

Charlie Brown's Eyes

Stopped to watch

Charlie Brown's eyes

winking in pools

as the rain fell

on Lower Kimmage Road.

Earlier in the pub

a burnt-out match

and a rib of hair

snagged my attention.

Drank more than intended.

Large raindrops and

yellow street-lights

are an iodine stain.

A carrier bag gulps

on the broken white line.

Back in the hallway,

removing my overcoat,

I stop,

stare at the carpet,

pull the collar back to my neck.