Kilkenny mother’s heartbreaking letter to her ‘angel’ daughter leaves Ryan Tubridy close to tears
A KILKENNY mother wrote a heartbreaking letter to her late daughter Ciara, which left Ryan Tubridy struggling for words live on air yesterday.
Ciara Lawlor (17) died tragically in July 2016 after collapsing at a Kodaline concert in Marlay Park, Dublin.
Her grieving mother Eimear penned a moving letter to Ciara, which Ryan read out on air as part of his show’s ‘Letter Never Sent’ series.
His voice tinged with emotion, Ryan struggled to read some passages of the letter, which began with Eimear reminiscing about Ciara as a baby.
Her letter began: “Do you remember me telling Dad I was pregnant with you and he hugged me and said, ‘we’re a family now’.”
“You arrived into this world in St. Luke’s hospital in Kilkenny at 8.40am on August 25, 1998. Jack had a baby sister. I pushed you and Jack in the double-buggy while he protectively held your hand and called you Bobby. Was it that he wanted a baby brother or just couldn’t say Ciara because he was only one-and-a-half?
“Do you remember when your baby brother Barry arrived two years after you were born? Do you remember how the two of you would laugh and chat for hours in your room? You were so pretty with the head of brown hair, which was to be replaced with the unruly curly hair with the spirit of its own and no matter how I tried to tame it, it bounced back to the wild mane of curls.
“I know you must have cried when you were a baby, all babies do, but I honestly can’t remember you crying. You never gave me any trouble. You asked me so many questions, you wanted to meet everyone. Do you remember how you loved Christmas, family time? You loved everyone in your family. You loved that you had three aunties and six uncles and 25 cousins. Do you remember our mother-daughter Saturdays?”
Eimear went on to talk happily about how close she was to her beloved daughter, who she also described as her “best-friend”.
The letter took a heartbreaking turn, as she described the days around the tragic death of her daughter.
“Do you remember you left me for the Kodaline concert on the Friday afternoon in July 2016? You were so happy with all your friends. I wished I hugged you before that, before you left. That is my only regret.
“Family, neighbours and friends silently lined the street as you were brought back home to Kilkenny on a Monday evening. On a Wednesday morning in July we said goodbye, but you will always be forever my angel and always in our hearts and minds.
“Lots of love and hugs, Mammy.”
