No.33

He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds 

peace in his home. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 

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I remember the September day in 1937 when Kirkintilloch made the front page of the national newspapers.

We were all shocked to learn that 10 young potato pickers from Ireland had lost their lives when fire broke out in the bothy where they were sleeping. They were male members of a group from Achill in County Mayo. 

Ages between 13 and 23, they were employed by W. and A. Graham, the potato merchants who owned the building. The fatal accident inquiry found that the victims had been overcome by carbon monoxide fumes while they slept, before the fire started.

Achill Island, Ireland where the potato pickers lived

The group's foreman and his son and the 14 women workers sleeping in the cottage next door escaped. Some of the girls had brothers and cousins among the dead.  The cause of the tragedy was never really known.

Many years later there was a development to the sad story when an old lady claimed that her estranged husband had told her that he was the person who had started the fire. Following an investigation in 1982, the Crown Office decided that there was insufficient evidence for a prosecution to be successful.

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"Haiku is simply what is happening in this place at this moment"

Matsuo Basho 1644-94

Haiku originated in Japan. When it was introduced to the West, it was understood that the haiku was a short poem of 3 lines, that line 1 had 5 syllables, line 2 had 7 syllables and line 3 had 5 syllables, and that the lines shouldn't rhyme. Nowadays we don't need to stick to those rules although some writers like the challenge of the "syllable" rule. Here are 3 of mine that do obey the rule.

lost property desk

the woman loses patience

the clerk his temper

early morning mist

across the loch trees take shape

the promise of sun

a bitter cold dawn

four young deer on the golf course

synchronised leaping

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Girl Arranging Flowers
painted by
Frederick Carl Frieseke 1874-1939

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I have to write a poem today,
 A short one, four lines long.
Something cute and breezy
With some rhythm, like a song.
The words must be quite catchy,
But I think it's kind of late.
These catchy words are breezy,
But this line is number eight!
by Denise Rodgers

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Next post - Monday