"Em

Brendan Behan and Jackie Gleason

You may have noticed that Irish people say 'em. It's a sound that's a form of reflective pause. Sounds are different from vowels and they're definitely not words which boast of meaning. Does an utterance which could be part of a noun tantalize with the prospect of association? A breath may hint at the prospect of naming. After all intention always lurks in the background. 'Em is a vibration that men feel in their Adam's apples. It is right below a growl though there's nothing threatening at work. The sound is that of an engine idling. The motive is less to hesitate than to warm up in the way one does before a drive through a snowy landscape. Ireland is full of cold and mist and one can see why many if its countryman might need to do away with the blarney before they set about their business.

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