Paddy and Margaret's Farm at Molanna Dairy Farm

Paddy and Margaret Fenton are dairy farmers living near Kilmallock. Paddy was born in 1942. They have 4 sons and 1 daughter. The 4th child, a son, is taking over the farm. He talked about the ownership of the land. Their families lived as tenant farmers. They were finally able to buy the land from the British government and had a 50 year mortgage, but then the Irish government took over, so the mortgage began again. It didn't stop there, the Anglican Church wanted their share; if you didn't pay you lost your furniture. and then the Catholic Curch stepped in and if you didn't pay you could not have Sacraments. Finally in 1961 the mortgage was paid. but the Catholic Church continues to want their share.

Paddy Fenton closed our visit with him by reciting this emotional poem:

What is All When All is Told

O' What is all when all is told,
This ceaseless tolling for fame and gold,
The fleeting joy of bitter tears,
We're only here for a few short years.
Nothing's our own save the silent past,
Loving or hating - no thing can last,
Each pathway leads to a silent fold,
O' what is all when all is told.

What is it all a grassy mound,
Where day or night there is never sound,
Save the soft low moan of the fanning breeze,
As it lovingly rustles the silent trees.
Or a thoughtful friend with whispered prayer,
May sometimes break the stillness there,
Then hurry away from the gloom and the cold,
O' what is all when all is told.

What is it all just passing true,
A cross for me and a cross for you,
Ours seems heavy while others seem light,
But God in the end makes all things right.
He tempts the mind with loving care,
He knows the burden that each can bear,
Then turns life's grey into loving gold,
O' what is all when all is told.