Death of Saint Kevin
Saint Kevin, the revered founder of Glendalough Monastery, lies on his deathbed surrounded by his devoted monks. In the flickering candlelight of the stone chapel, he imparts his final blessings and s
Setting
St. Kevin's Church, a small stone oratory in the monastic settlement of Glendalough. The chapel is dimly lit, with rough-hewn stone walls and a simple wooden altar. The space is intimate, with monks gathered closely around the saint's bed.
Characters
Saint Kevin
primary
An elderly man with a gaunt, ascetic face framed by a long white beard. His sunken cheeks and deeply lined forehead bear witness to decades of fasting and prayer. Pale blue eyes, still sharp despite his frailty, gaze with spiritual intensity. His hands, resting on the woolen blanket, are bony with prominent veins and joints swollen from arthritis.
Prior Aedh
primary
A tall, lean man in his late fifties with a deeply lined face and a closely cropped tonsure. His grey-streaked brown hair frames a face marked by years of asceticism, with sharp cheekbones and a prominent nose. His hands, clasped in prayer, are rough from manual labor but steady.
Brother Fiachra
secondary
A young monk in his early twenties, slender with a pale complexion typical of those who spend most of their time indoors. His light brown hair is neatly tonsured in the monastic tradition, and his blue eyes are sharp with concentration. His hands are ink-stained from frequent writing.
Brother Colmán
secondary
An aged monk with a gaunt, weathered face marked by deep wrinkles around his eyes and mouth. His thin white hair is tonsured in the monastic fashion, and his hands are gnarled from years of labor and prayer. His pale blue eyes are red-rimmed from weeping.
Novice Cormac
background
A slender youth of about 15 years, with a pale complexion and a scattering of freckles across his nose. His hands are delicate but show early signs of callouses from monastic labor. His light brown hair is cropped short in the tonsure style, with a prominent cowlick at the crown that refuses to lie flat.
Dialog
Saint Kevin
Little sons in Christ, gather close... for Kevin would have you hear his final counsel.
Prior Aedh
Ita, Domine. We are listening with all reverence.
Saint Kevin
As the salmon returns to the stream of its birth... so must you return always to the Rule...
Prior Aedh
The brethren will keep the hours as you taught us, down to the last psalm.
Saint Kevin
Aedh... my oak... you must bend with the wind... but never break...
Prior Aedh
Per Christum Dominum nostrum, I shall hold fast.
Saint Kevin
The angels... they sing Cumhachta Dé... can you hear them, little sons?