‘Cast a cold Eye On Life, on Death. Horseman pass by.’ W.B. YEATS June 13th 1865 January 28th 1939.
This is the famous inscription, taken from the poem Under Ben Bulben, which decorates the grave of W.B. Yeats, in Drumcliffe churchyard, north of Sligo town. The words were Yeats’ own epitaph, and he also gave instruction that the grave should display: ‘No marble, no conventional phrase;/On limestone quarried near the spot/By his command these words are cut’.
The lines come from the 1939 collection Last Poems. In his fine book on Yeats and Sligo, Arise and Go, (O’Brien) Kevin Connolly astutely points out that “the doors of St. Columba’s Church bear handles in the shape of swans, commemorating the poet’s frequent use of the swan in his poetic imagery.”
Despite Yeats’ instruction, however, it is highly unlikely that the Horseman will pass by Drumcliffe. The reason is because Michelle Kelly has charge of the Pink Clover café, beside the graveyard, and Michelle and her girls are doing a fantastic job, with an in-house bakery that produces fluffy focaccia for their sandwiches, and a range of scones.
If nothing else, the lemon drizzle cake alone is worth the detour, and the skill in the baking shows Michelle’s Ballymaloe Cookery School training. So we want to go back for the quiche Lorraine with Pink Clover slaw and Guinness and treacle brown bread, and the Pink Clover club sandwich with buttermilk ranch, and the plum, pistachio and coconut cake. Lots of lovely local pantry foods on the shelves, including local eggs and organics, Wildwood honey and Carrow Coffee - so you can take the taste of Sligo back home. Pink Clover is sweet and lovely.