“And just what is the matter with that, young man? Are you ashamed to be seen hugging your mother?”
“No, Mam, but haven’t you hugged me enough?” William wriggled out of this mother’s arms, then noticed the tears staining her cheeks. “Mam, don’t cry; please don’t cry.”
She swiped a hand across her face. “I canna help it. I am never to see ye again, William. What would ye have me do, dance a jig?
“Of course not. But I’d not have ye cry either. We’ve been over this, Mam; there’s a fortune in America for those willing to work hard. Ye know I willna get that opportunity here.”
His mother nodded. Between the famine and rising rents, there was little to keep young men in Ulster. “Knowing it does not stop the tears, son. Now, kiss your mam and hug me tight enough to last a lifetime, then ye best get yourself on that ship.”
He bent down to kiss his mother’s cheek, and instead picked the tiny woman off the ground and buried his face in her shoulder. “I love you, Mam. I’ll get word to you somehow when I get settled. Dinna worry.” He set her down and turned for the ship, afraid he might lose his resolve if he lingered longer.
No point looking back; his future lay in America.
No point looking back…
Could you do it? Leave your family, the people you’ve known all your life, everything and everyplace you’ve ever known for a new life 3500 miles away and not look back? I’ve tried to wrap my head around that idea, but still cannot imagine giving up all I know for a new start.
Yet that is what William, and thousands of immigrants from Ulster, did during the 1700s. Some came out of shear desperation—in addition to famine and rising land rents, those not conforming to the edicts of the crown faced religious and political persecution. But I like to believe
