An excerpt from The Spook's Curse by Joseph Delaney:
My dad was a believer, even though he never went to church. None of our family did because farming didn't stop on Sunday and we were always too busy miking or doing other chores. But it suddenly made me wonder what the Spook believed, especially knowing what Mam had told me - that the Spook had once been a priest himself.
'Do you believe in God?' I asked him.
'I used to believe in God,' the Spook replied, his expression very thoughtful. 'When i was a child i never doubted the existence of God for a single moment, but eventually I changed. You see lad, when you've lived as long as I have, there are things that make you wonder. So now I'm not so sure but I still keep an open mind.
'But I'll tell you this,' he went on. 'Two or three times in my life I've been in situations so bad that I never expected to walk away from them. I've faced the dark and almost, but not quite, resigned myself to death. Then, just when all's seemed lost, I've been filled with new strength. Where it came from I can only guess. But with that strength came a new feeling. That someone or something was at my side. That I was no longer alone.'
The Spook paused and sighed deeply. 'I don't believe in the God they preach about in church,' he said. 'I don't believe in an old man with a white beard. But there's something watching what we do, and if you live your life right, in your hour of need it'll stand at your side and lend you its strength. That's what I believe.'
