Family pay emotional farewell to beloved son
THE parents of the late James Harrison found the strength, on the day they laid their boy to rest, to pay eloquent tribute to their son, who was described as someone who lived a magical life and poured colour into their world.
James (17) was laid to rest last Wednesday at Rahoon Cemetery in Galway city, three days after he died following a tragic accident while he was out walking with family members at Ceann an Daimh (Bull’s Head) in Lios Póil.
His body was recovered on Sunday, January 3, from the sea near Cinn Áird, less than two hours after his parents had alerted emergency services.
It is thought that he slipped and fell out over a cliff after he continued walking for a brief time while his family took in the surroundings in the popular coastal beauty spot. The young man was an experienced hill-walker and knew the area, not far from his mother Maire’s home town of Dingle, very well.
His father, Matthew, spoke at the outset of last Wednesday’s Mass, which took place at St Ignatius Church, not far from the family’s home in Devon Park.
‘‘We have three equally beautiful stars in our family and will always have: James, Daniel, and Aoife,’’ he told the congregation. ‘‘We have two of those wonderful stars with us right now... James is not in our space, but he’s in our history, and his light reaches us through time.
‘‘On the evening of the day we lost him, his cousins lit a fire on his pitch in front of
the house in Cinn Áird, and above us, in the icy depths of an absolutely clear sky, there was an infinity of stars. James will make the face of Heaven so fine.’’
Matthew paid tribute to all of James’s family and relations, and commented that he had never seen a closer bond between adult and child as the one that existed between James and his grandfather, Tim.
‘‘James was a wonderful, wonderful son,’’ he continued. ‘‘Daniel, Aoife, Aoife and I love him, loved him, in his complexities. He was kind, charming, feisty, argumentative, clever, cunning, thoughtful.
‘‘We may have lost an immortal part of ourselves, our bright, bright son, and his destiny, but we can only hope that his light touches us for eternity.’’
Ahead of the final prayers, James’s uncle, Aodh, recited a poem he penned on the day James was born, while Aodh’s brother, Micheál, also offered a wonderful tribute to his nephew.
His mother, Máire, spoke of her deep admiration for the efforts made by members of the communities in Kerry and Galway to comfort the Harrison family in their darkest days.
She also extended her gratitude to the emergency services who answered their call the previous Sunday, and to those who lined points of the long route from Lios Poil to Galway on the day prior to the Funeral.
‘‘James lived a magical life,’’ she said. ‘‘He poured colour into our world. Níl sé imithe uainn, ach romhainn; he’s not gone from us, but before us.’’