A note from Daniel
LISTENING TO HER stories through my life, I always felt that my mother had a great book in her, and I have been encouraging her for many years to put pen to paper.
When she finally decided to write her story, I was delighted to see her set about the task with enthusiasm and passion. It provided many fruitful hours for my mother during the last two years as she documented an extraordinary life, from a poverty-stricken background to the glitz of show business.
I really feel there is no generation that will ever see change like my mother’s. She was born in 1919 and has lived through so much. It would be a shame if that little bit of history went to the grave with her, as it has done with so many other wonderful characters.
Today it’s hard to imagine just how primitive her early life was on the island of Owey, where she went barefoot as a child and grew up without electricity and all the mod cons we take for granted today. But it is a background rich in experiences and the traditions of a bygone age, as you will discover. Despite the hardship of their lifestyle, Owey people were enterprising, self-sufficient and a happy, close-knit community.
Later in her life, my mother had to face unimaginable personal heartbreak when my father died while still in his 40s. There were five children and we were all young.
My mother never got over my father’s death. She misses him even to this day. But she put her own pain aside to ensure that we didn’t suffer in any way. She sacrificed everything for us – her whole life was her family. Personally, my mother was everything to me – she was a mother and a father. Never ever did I feel a sense of missing anything in my life.
My mother wanted her family to go on and live as well as we could. She encouraged me to follow my dream, and she was always there in the background praising me. She’s very, very supportive – even to this day.
I really appreciate everything that my mother has done for me and our family. And I am delighted that she has lived to see us do well in our lives – all of us, including the grandchildren; she’s a very hands-on woman in their lives too.
It’s good to see her enjoy the finer things in life these days, and it gives me great pleasure to see her share in my success, just as she did with Margaret. The people who come to see me love to see her at my shows, and she enjoys the bit of fuss they make of her.
So, Mother, thank you for all that you’ve done through the years for me. I’m just thankful that you have been able to enjoy my success, and please God you’ll make it to a hundred.
Daniel O’Donnell, 2006