I stopped in to the local tavern to have my nightly drinks. As I entered the joint, my ears were assaulted by loud singing from somewhere in the back. I walked over to the bar and bellowed for the bartender. When he came over I yelled to him,

"Whisky please."

William, the tender, looked at me for a second, then a smile of gratitude spread across his face.

"Mac! Thank God. I have had to put up with this for over an hour. They are your people and you hold respect with them, can you PLEASE ask them to quiet down?"

I gave him a sideways glance as he handed me my drink. My people? The song was an old Irish lullaby. Intrigued, I walked over to the men at the back table. As I approached, they did quiet down.

"McKinley! So glad you showed up in this time of blessings. Please, have a seat."

The man speaking was a brute of a fella, six foot five if he was an inch. And current coal miner I knew from our time on Ellis Island, waiting to get into this country. He shook my hand hard and led me to a chair. As I sat down the group became silent as he told me of the glad tidings.

"Me wife, she gave birth to a son ..... a SON! Two daughters and now ...."

His eyes began to water a bit as he chocked back any other words. I knew and understood what he was feeling. I, God willing, will be in his shoes someday. Daughters are a blessing and a gift to anyone,  but a male child? A male child will carry on your family name. I gave his words a few moments of heart felt thought before I stood, with a smile on my face,

"Shut your gobs. I'll be back in a bit."

The men looked at me, shocked, but they did hold the noise down as I walked up to the bar again and waved William over.

"Bottle of whiskey."

Will looked at me with questions in his eyes, but handed me a bottle non the less. I went back to the table and poured each man a full glass. I took my own glass up and raised it in a toast.

"Sláinte chuig na fir, agus go mairfidh na mná go deo."

All the men gathered responded with "Sláinte!" as we all drank. As I was very excited for my Irish brother, I restarted the song louder then before,

Over in Killarney
Many years ago,
Me Mither sang a song to me
In tones so sweet and low.
Just a simple little ditty,
In her good ould Irish way,
And l'd give the world if she could sing
That song to me this day.

"Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, Too-ra-loo-ra-li,
Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, hush now, don't you cry!
Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, Too-ra-loo-ra-li,
Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, that's an Irish lullaby."