Parade Day may be over in Scranton and Wilkes-Barre, but that doesn’t mean the celebration of Irish heritage and culture is quite over in NEPA. This Friday, on the eve of St. Patrick’s Day, the Art SEEN Gallery on Public Square in Wilkes Barre is presenting a unique St. Patty’s Day event. There will be a reading of work by Irish writers starting at 8 p.m. A limited open mic will follow. Anyone can sign up to read, and if you aren’t sure what to share, just Google W.B. Yeats, James Joyce, Seamus Heaney, Frank McCourt, or any other Irish writer. There will also be some books on hand to chose from.
To get you in the mood for this event, here is one of my favorite love poems by Yeats.
When You are Old
When you are old and grey and full of sleep,
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;
How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true,
But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face;
And bending down beside the glowing bars,
Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.
Brian Fanelli 