Mischief makers

"I wonder can he keep order with a crowd of holligans." Brother Healy had his doubts. Famous preachers could be a bit ethereal for his liking.

"OR realise when those girls are making a fool of him." Mother Bernard had an eagle eye for mischief makers.

"I don't know why we're even debating it, Mother Bernard. There decisions are never left to us, the people who know about how things should be done."

They often asked each other why they bothered discussing things, but in their hearts they knew that they loved discussing things.

As educators of Lough Glass's young they were united in facing the problems of the uncaring world.

Secretly Mother Bernard thought that Brother Healy had life easy. Boys were so simple and straightforward. They weren't devious, like girls. Brother Healy thought that it must be a very easy number just to have little girls in a uniform.

They didn't write terrible words in the bicycle shed and beat each other black and blue in the yard. But neither of them had much faith that Father John, preacher extraordinary, would keep the minds and attention of the children of this lakeland town.

The day before school reopened the children were all down by the lake enjoying the last hours of freedom, and even though they groaned about the awfulness of going back to the dreaded classroom the next day, quite a few of them were relieved that the long summer was over.

Philip O'Brien from the hotel was particuarly pleased. It had been very hard to fill the hours. If he stayed in the hotel his father was inclined to say that he should wash the glasses or empty the ashtrays.

Emmet McMahon was looking forward to showing off his new confidence. A few weeks with Sister Madeleine had done wonders. He had even asked her if she could do the poems in his school book, in case they might make sense like the ones in her book. As if you read them with your heart.