Our Day Will Come

Tiocfaidh ár lá - Gaelic for Our Day Will Come. 

It is hard for many Westerners to imagine with the changes in culture, family structure, and sense of patriotic duty over the last 50 years, but there was a time when the identity of an individual was centered around culture, family, and patriotism. That is, once upon a time, the general population held fast to each other because they shared very similar beliefs about their civilization’s values, the importance of kin, and an immense pride in their heritage as a nation.

This sense of belonging to something greater than themselves has raced through the blood of the Irish for centuries.  It is why claiming Irish heritage is a badge of honor for many, even if just a small percentage of their ancestry, and it is why the island culture of Ireland has its own yearly celebration in several countries.

The British Empire had varying levels of success trying to conquer Ireland for over 1,000 years. After a millennium of struggle, a large portion of the island was able to finally achieve independence from Britain just over 100 years ago to form what we know today as Ireland.  However, the northern part of the island’s government voted to remain with Britain and became known as Northern Ireland. Despite the vote of the government, many people within this territory vowed to continue the fight for complete independence and to ensure the heritage, culture, and nation contained in the country remained pure and unfettered from their English cousins.

From this split between Ireland and Northern Ireland came what was to be known as the Troubles - a period of intense struggle for reunification of the island under local, Irish control with many mitigating factors including religious and ethnic conflicts. The Troubles lasted from the 1960s to just before the turn of the century in 1998.

In the 1970s as the conflict started to peak, the Irish phrase Tiocfaidh ár lá (Our Day Will Come) gained popularity from letters written by Bobby Sands, a political prisoner struggling for Northern Ireland’s independence. Sands last used the phrase in the final sentence of his diary before his death in the British prison called the Maze. Another attribution of the origin of this Irish phrase is ascribed to Northern Island activist, Gerry Adams.

The day that these men and many other men and women of Northern Ireland put their faith in was the day that all of Ireland would return to complete Irish control.  This simple phrase stirred the emotions of the kinsmen, helping them remember the long struggle the people had been through (for hundreds and hundreds of years) and pointed to the day that all the suffering, hardship, and pain would be made worth sacrifice. The sense of pride in their country, their heritage, and their rights as a people to be free of oppression from the British Empire were wrapped tightly within this succinct statement.

Whether one admires their spirit of independence, their immense loyalty to their land, or their unyielding allegiance to their kin and kith, the Irish experience during this period of struggle and faith speaks to all who wait for their day to come.  Add the Our Day Will Come patch to your collection to embrace your independent heritage and faith in the future. 

• 3.5"x2
• Woven
• Hook Backing
• Release: 4/8/2022