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By Michael McGrath The blackbirds are back. I saw them first thing this morning in the back yard pecking away at lord knows what. The Ravens never leave. They are always there in the background. I admire them for their stealth and cunning. They are true survivors and can be seen in the treetops about […]

I grew up on the wrong side of the tracks in Iroquois Falls during the 1950s. Actually, it has been a running gag over the years between me and my friends that in fact we were fortunate to have been raised in Ansonville and Montrock. Iroquois falls proper back then was supposedly the right side […]

By Michael McGrath – January 2010 In the mid 1950s, when I was just a bit of a lad, I passed many a day on the family swing. Few households in Iroquois Falls back then had the luxury of a full fledged swing. Sure, there were all sorts of basic examples of the swing hanging […]

by Mike McGrath (C) 1985     A voice in the hall said it was three in the morning and he marveled to himself  at his wide awake state. It probably had something to do with the music blaring top 40 hits next door and of course the company he didn’t keep in the hall.     […]

When we stopped with a clunk he got on in New Liskeard,He was tall, a bit plump and walked awkwardly up the aisle.It could be he was a farm boy with his blond hair and freckled face.His look was a bit out of sync as though someone else had dressed him.He hid his eyes under […]

By Michael McGrath – 1986 Mama, as the locals called her, was a big busted Quebecois woman with a head piled high with blonde hair. Here in Juan Dolio she was popular with all the boys. The women were less generous in her regard and showed signs of mild disgust in asides here and there […]

By Michael McGrath – 1986 The way he moves is slow and like he is captive,He has the fear of a caged animal about him,Slavery days of yesteryear still have a hold,Buccaneers still ride the waves in his DNA,Spanish galleons still guard the way to port.When he stops to look in my general directionI see […]

by Michael McGrath – 1985 I don’t know what type of tree it was,Winter had taken the life from its limbs and branches,Leaves had long since flown with the wind,But, two berries remained dangling from a mere thread of fibre,Bright Red Berries they were,They almost glowed in contrast to the grey and white of the […]

By Tessie Ruddy 2008 I grew up in a small “paper” town in Northern Ontario during the great depression, as they called it. Strange in way for us because although things were tight we never felt depressed. We didn’t have much in the way of marvellous furniture or possessions, but we had some marvellous times. […]

Eulogy For Emily McGrath by Michael McGrath May 28, 2007Read At Her Funeral by Michael McGrath and John Elliott Thank you all for being here today in honour of Emmy. The family wants to thank Doctor Lupien and many nurses for the wonderful care they gave mom over the many months that she was sick. […]

I Don’t Feel Like Singing AnymoreBy Mike McGrath for Emily , June 21, 2007 C……Em……F……G……Em…..C I don’t feel like singing anymore,Feel like a bird that’s fallen from the sky,I don’t feel like dancing all around,Feel like a butterfly that broke its wingIt’s like the world has grown cold and grey I don’t feel like laughing […]

Time For Living Lyrics By Michael McGrath for an old friend April 14, 2008 The Song is being developed Well I’m standing here feeling like a long lost friend, Just might come by blowing in with the wind, It just could be that I’ve finally bottomed out, And just when I thought that life was […]

The Living RoomBy Mike McGrath for John E, April 14, 2008 Somewhere they are waiting,Tea is on the stove and cookies baking,They are playing the piano and singing tunes, Nothing really matters in the living roomNothing really matters in the living roomNothing really matters in the living room There comes a knocking on the door,No […]

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