Michael V Sherlock – A Good Life

On May 5, 1974 Peter drove his mother to visit her doctor in the small but now well-known town of Athenry. As well as the doctor’s visit, Peter had other business to attend to, with regard to his agricultural business. He employed about seven young men to drive his tractors on contract to other farmers, and the worrier that he was, he was always uneasy about their wild driving habits. Having deposited mother at the doctor’s office, he knew he would not be in a position to drive her home. Now dutiful son that he was, he would call a cab which would wait outside to take mother home.

Some weeks prior to the doctor’s visit, mother had requested that Peter, on visiting the local butcher shop in Athenry, might buy a couple of pounds of meat for dinner. She was a great cook and the smell of home ovened bread was a treat. Rarely if ever did she dine outside her house or indeed in a restaurant. Her visit to a café in Galway would have been for a cup of tea and a piece of cake, and that would delight her conversation for days. Of course, Peter was happy to accommodate her and duly brought home the requested pounds of beef.

She asked him how much she owed, and he said, “nothing was owed”, and in any case he had some major cattle business with the butcher which entailed thousands of euros. About 12 head of cattle would be delivered to the abattoir within weeks and, when the deal was negotiated, all due bills would be taken care of.

It seemed that the explanation was acceptable as trust was an every-abiding framework of doing business. Woe to him who didn’t respect that trust. Mother was at an advanced age at this time and had to pay her doctor a visit on many occasions.

On this one occasion, Peter gladly drove her, and having the same concerns always for his tractor business, he called the taxi to make sure she got home safe to Tiaquin, the village where she lived, about seven miles from Athenry.

Having paid the taxi driver, whom he knew, he felt content that all would be well.

Mother on the other hand had plans of her own. She ordered the taxi to stop at the butcher shop, which was owned by Paddy Hession, whose father Michael had been “on the run” with mother’s husband Peter, during the insurrection from 1916-1921.

Mother asked Paddy for the bill from a few weeks prior. Mr. Hession told her not to worry about that as Peter would settle up when the cattle deal was complete.

She would have none of this and insisted on paying the three euros or so to settle the bill. She then went back to the waiting taxi and went on her way home. On arrival at home, she lit a candle in front of a small statue which she then brought to the bedroom.

Having done that, she lay down on her bed, and died, peacefully, her bills on this earth having been all paid up. A final example of a poor life well lived.