Maura Corr

Religion ruled.  Practically everything was a sin.  Sex was never mentioned even though there were unaccounted children in families, they were accepted by us children.  One never questioned.

The boys were almost aliens to us who attended all girls schools.  They were never mentioned.

We did have the boys from the Industrial School in Artane who passed by regularly.  They passed in orderly file, neat and clean, accompanied by an older brother in charge.

We had a Corpus Christi procession in their school grounds in summer.  We old and young would sing hymns and pray but we never mingled.

I can still hear the cries of Bobby a local boy, who was there for mitching.  He escaped home, but was dragged back to Artane by his mother.  His cries haunt me still.

My earliest memories are my brothers and sister and I sleeping in a bed which had to be taken down each night and made up in the sittingroom.  It was like a large wardrobe   Made by my father.  We once found our pet dog missing, after a day wrapped up in the blankets.  He survived.

Watching the children coming home for school through the window, where first we had to remove the ice from the inside pane.  The house was cold as we had only the fire for hearing, plus the range.  My older brothers would stick their feet in the over to get warm and we’d even heat bricks in there, then cover them and put them in our beds to keep warm.

We also had gas for lights and lamps and candles.  The gas shade was easily broken and often we’d be half in the dark.  One of my brothers eventually sorted us out with electricity.  We were then the first family to acquire a TV in our area.