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MERCIER PRESS
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© Angela Collins O’Mahony, 2016
ISBN: 978 1 78117 446 3
Epub ISBN: 978 1 78117 447 0
Mobi ISBN: 978 1 78117 448 7
This eBook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.
I dedicate this book to John, my husband of fifty years;
to our children, Susan, John, Martina and Hilda;
and to our grandchildren, Karen, Andy, Emma and Kate
I recall being conferred with an honorary doctorate in Dublin Castle like it was yesterday. The then Taoiseach, Albert Reynolds, presented the parchment to me. I was with my family and friends among some of the greatest minds of Ireland. I found it hard to contain my inner joy, but, despite the great ceremony, flashing cameras and smiling faces, my thoughts travelled back to my humble beginnings and to my first childhood memory.