Next weekend I'll be
here, positioning myself and my family in the gentle shadow of this beautiful
old tree, embracing its energy and paying homage to its narrative.
The tree's roots plough
into the rich history of the land that they sustain, strong limbs stretching
with unrivalled intention into warm soil, long fingers channelling backwards
and forwards in peaty earth that tastes of cold autumn evenings. The scent of a
slow burning fire hangs softly in sharp air that charts the space you breathe,
coming alive in a frosty smoke that chases speech playfully, meandering suggestively among tickling branches before taking
flight. If its roots were underwater they would fashion a creel; a conduit of
hope.
This Muile nan Craobh
(Mull of the Trees) in the townland of Mullindress, Rathlin Island, is my
garden of Eden, the field in which my new home is rising from the hallowed earth,
emerging from soil that has enriched and blessed my father's family, my
siblings and my children's. It is an integral element of who we all are and
what we will all become. Its past is our past, its future our legacy. It
is fitting then that this strong symbol of life, so important to us in
fortifying our heritage and giving optimism for the future, will be Tommy's
tree.
Next weekend, my beautiful Grandson Tommy will
secure his rightful place in the inheritance that is rightfully his, even
though it was wrongfully denied him. As we remember him, imagining with joy and
sadness the world that we dared to hope to embrace alongside him, his roots
will cradle us, protect us and keep us safe. We will never forget him and in
the Muile nan Craobh he will be as much a part of us as we are of him.
Tommy’s narrative is embedded in the roots of
Mullindress and our American oak swing, hand carved with love and compassion
and swung high from the arms of strong branches, will sway with him and hug and
protect his memory.
