a cara........recently driving back to toronto from kenagami lake in nothern ontario i was alerted to the state of high security that has gripped ontario as it prepares to host the G 8 and the G 20.....beautiful hutsville which is in the heart of the beautiful muskokas is cordoned off ...secured tighter than a drum....then as i entered toronto signs illumined the highways and expressways warning of closures and significant delays during the period of the summit.....downtown toronto has become a wall of high fences and barricades.....and rumour has it that there is an expected exodus from the city next week ....as this security kicks in....the media say that it is costing 2 billion dollars.....and so as i got home my mind drifted to much more gentler times of once upon a good time.......i was inspired by the tom jones song....the old home town looks the same.....as i stepped off the train.....a pictorial of the excitement and warmth that bon fire night brought took hold of my mind......by now most of the turf and daihl .....rubber tyres .....wood etc had been gathered .....the building of the giant fires had begun.....the major fires of the day were held on mchale road....blacfort.....spencer strett.....staball....the feeney brothers....and patsy {bisto} feeney...danno rainsford....paddy freyne....paudeen guthrie....the scullys....sony delanney.....cagney......the mees ...the oboyles....george bartley....roy lindsay......were some of the major organisers of the mchale road.....fire...on the night each house lit a smaller fire ...and the road became a spectacle of fire.....there was a great buzz as we awaited in anticipation of the lighting of the big fire......people began to gather......paddy...laughie mcginty....chas and paddy guthrie....kathleen and jack cassidy took their spot.....soon the torch was lit and the magic began.......coils of smoke weaved toward the night skies......as bright yellow flames.....lit up the shades of night......the sparks danced from the fire as the logs began to catch fire.... neighbours and friends became animated in tales of other days.....faces and eyes twinkled and danced in joy and laughter....as the fire lit up the night skies and the hearts of all.....minerals and bottles of guiness added to the wonderful excitement....as ...by now there was an urgency for song and dance......soon various "artists"....burst into song......there was a hush as paddy mcginty ...began to sing....lonely i wander through scenes of my choldhood....they call back to memory those happy days of yore.....gone are the old folk .....the house stands deserted....no light in the windows....no welcome at the door.....etc....next paddy guthrie perhaps...or chas.......then there again was a hush...as the haunting strains.....of ...a workin' man came home one night.....to find his house without a light....reverborated through illumined night air.....then there was dancing....as i reflect....i can see peggy flanagan....mrs. feeney.....mrs. mary corcoran....and bill.....betty.. bridie.....corcoran....lil.....patsy.....bridie whittaker.....the warrington sisters....mary and bridie.....bridie fallon and kitty cresham....molly guthrie....and her sister....bridie bartley...and so many others....the longest day of the year was just that.....the longest night of myrth....song and laughter......bklackfort had similar festivities.....as did spencer street.......the fire her ...was usually built outside.....horkans.....again hosts of people gathered.....paddy kelly....together with his mother of pearl accordion..took up his seat and position......the walsh boys......ulich.....christy.....dilly ....sky....the barretts....jackie elliott....my old buddy tossy kelly.....johnny corcoran.....the horkan brothers.....the kings ...and byrnnes....michael geraghty.....michael dolan....the mullins.....igoes....they were all there.....and the format was the same.....the lighting of the fire....the singing.....and of course the extra addition of paddy kelly playing......i remember one year paddy was in the swing of his accordion favourites when lar bourke asked him to play a request......memory serves me it went like this......after paddy ended one of his collections.....lar ....shouted out ....paddy play the tennessee waltz and i'll sing it.....paddy not wanting to be upstaged by the marvellous baritone voice of lar.....replied....bourke....i'll play no requests for no one...now.....just then someone grabbed paddys tweed cap from his head.....and tommy horkan dumped a bucket of water from his window on top of paddy......paddy jumped up....in shock and anger.........protecting his accordion ....as he exclaimed......he's ruined my mother of pearl accordion.....young horkan....i'll have you in the dock....i'll have fitzgerald kenny on you.....paddy gandered and swished away.....as jack elliott suggested to tossy.....shoot the bloody budha.....

another fire that i certainly enjoyed was in derrycoosh.....outside....the quinns....here villagers.....the burkes....stauntons....quinns.....walshes....lennons...fahys.....omalleys.....mclaughlins....mcdonaghs.....henry kenny.....celebrated this night of the big fire ......this was the night when the mystery of irish folklore unfolded in real life.....here the rawness of our culture was carved in the hearts and psyche ...of all that shared in the magic.....this is warmth that has glowed warmly and brightly in my soul through all the many years of my exile.....this is what has endeared me to tir na n'og....

....lone is the house now ...and lonely the moorland....the children are scattered ....the old folk are gone....why stand i here....like a ghost ...and a shadow......'tis time i was moving ....tis time i passed on.....

and that was the way it was when the bon fires were lit.....

.....tog go bog e.....