In December In Millstreet

The gray fogs of the high ground have shrouded Clara Hill
And in the fields of Duhallow the Winter winds blow chill
And the rushy lands are flooded where the Cails and Finnow meet
Not a time of year for birdsong in December in Millstreet
In the farmyard sheds the cattle bellow for silage or hay
It is cold by Clara Mountain minus five degrees today
Hungry redwings from the Northlands chirping on the bare hedgerow
On a bleak morning in Duhallow that is cold enough to snow
Many a cold and wet day, night, morning and evening until the first breath of Spring
Till on bushes, leafy groves and trees the nesting birds will sing
Winter by the Boggeragh Mountains is a hungry time of year
When the trees and hedgerows are bare birdsong a thing you will not hear
But the swallows will return to Duhallow in the Spring
And the trees will grow their new leaves and the nesting birds will sing.