JohnJoe's clever plan -- JohnJoe gets a wife -- The jubilee nurse -- In the farmhouse kitchen -- The turkey in the cupboard -- Love writ shyly -- My fifty-two-acre playground -- The lovely church -- Praying for the dead -- The storyteller -- The road to school -- First babies -- The penny catechism -- Scary surprise from the dark continent -- The red motorcar -- To school with Uncle Jack and Red -- Altar boy days -- The recruiter -- Blessed Oliver -- The sweet paper -- Sheriff Johnny's gun -- My boxing career -- Tyranny of the Irish weather -- De Valera and Dad's turnips -- Early morning cattle drive -- The early lives of piglets -- Horses -- The forge -- Whiteface and the stallion -- The bull on the farm -- Accident near Tullamore -- Isaac's tree -- Burning bushes -- We were rich and we didn't know it -- The rambler -- Luckless Lar -- The man who knew everything -- Wasted on the bog air -- Jimser Scott -- Billy -- Flying the nest.
Summary:
"Tom Phelan, who was born and raised in County Laois in the Irish midlands, spent his formative years working with his wise and demanding father as he sought to wrest a livelihood from a farm that was often wet, muddy, and back-breaking. It was a time before rural electrification, the telephone, and indoor plumbing; a time when the main modes of travel were bicycle and animal cart; a time when small farmers struggled to survive and turkey eggs were hatched in the kitchen cupboard; a time when the Church exerted enormous control over Ireland. We Were Rich and We Didn't Know It recounts Tom's upbringing in an isolated, rural community from the day he was delivered by the local midwife. With tears and laughter, it speaks to the strength of the human spirit in the face of life's adversities"-- Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.