Told as a monologue. Bridegroom Tom Fallon speaking from the heart tells his story. Fallon travels to England to live and work, but after a couple of years finds himself back in rural Ireland, blind in both eyes after an altercation with some yobs’ boots. Through quiet determination, Tom’s friends help him to stop brooding and give him the confidence to continue living. All of which leads up to meeting his future wife and his wedding day. A warm, uplifting story, beautifully written and a pleasure to read and re-read.

“Paulie Nolan is another one I have to thank. I don’t know why and I don’t know how he could bear it but when I came out of the asylum, that good man and neighbour came to sit with me every week while my mother went to work.
‘All right, Tommy, boy,’ he used to say. ‘I cannot get a minute’s peace in my own house so you don’t mind if I perch on this chair and read myself the Evening Echo do you?’
I could hear the paper rustling and he’d talk to himself about the football and the hurling, call down fire on the head of Liam Cosgrave and Paddy Donegan and every other politician up in Dublin that knew nothing of the real world as far as he was concerned.
Talking to himself he was, week after week, a right windbag and blabbermouth. No wonder they didn’t want him at home. Yes, you can all laugh now but its’s what I thought. I didn’t realise his kindness to me, as good as any father, better than some.”

First published in Supporting Cast, Penguin, 2020