In His Lifetime Patrick Kavanagh

In his Lifetime Patrick Kavanagh was a literary man of note
And in the mid twentieth century some critics claimed him to be Ireland's finest poet
In the forties to the sixties he was lauded as a poetic great
But nowadays he is not the poet the masses celebrate.

Though long dead he's not forgotten many of his poems live on
The mantle of true greatness Patrick Kavanagh did don
In his Lifetime he was one of those who did enjoy great fame
And his was celebrated as a major literary name.

Patrick Kavanagh was a poetic legend going back a few decades ago
At least in his own Lifetime fame and recognition he did know
Recognition and fame to a dead person is worthless after all
If his or her contribution to human history the masses do recall.

His fame did spread far distant from his home country-side
In his Lifetime Patrick Kavanagh he became known Worldwide
Claimed by many to be Ireland's greatest poet when i was a Schoolboy
And he left behind his verses for others to enjoy.