Do you see me ?

The names of most of these young boys have faded from my memory. This picture was taken in Scoil Fatima, Sligo when I was in First Class. There must have been two classes taken together that day at the back of the school....47....48 boys...I missed one.... seems too big a class even for back then.....and it might explain why so many of the faces are unfamiliar to me. No school uniform... Some of them I remember.. but I can’t think of their full names. Short trousers and long socks...... Sometimes we used elastic bands to keep our socks up. I see Sean Hughes in the front row has long trousers....how could I forget that we all wanted long trousers at that time. Eoin O’Sullivan... Tony Moony...who used to “gather” apples (cookers) in the Autumn and sell them to my mother who made apple tarts with them, Ronnie Dunne..deep voice, Sean Mc Gowan, Michael Moyles....his family owned The Imperial... Reggie Armstrong...good footballer, John O’ Connell, Martin Morrison...from 10 Doorly Park..a friend, Oisin Gilbride, Billy Adams...from Garavogue, Lily’s brother, Liam Mc Gettigan...his family owned the Cruiscin Lan in Old Market Street, Sean Hughes from Martin Savage Terrace, Martin Callaghan another good footballer...Nelius Flynn, sixth from left, second row from the back.....a shy, quiet seven year old. I loved a new, thick, colouring book and a packet of crayons. My sister Ann and myself coloured happily for hours.

I wonder who the boy on the right is who is cropped out of the picture......I missed him the first time I counted. He is number 48.