THE COFFINS lay side by side in the funeral home in Callan, two white ones for the children and, in between, a brown casket for their mother.
A single red rose adorned the coffin of the two young girls and there was a photograph on each of the three coffins.
While the bodies of Sharon Whelan (30) and her two children Zsara (7) and Nadia (2) remained in the Waterford Regional Hospital last week for extensive forensic examination, local people could only think of their deaths in abstract terms.
But, as they filed past the three coffins in Molloy's funeral home early yesterday, the full horror of the fire that killed the mother and her two daughters on Christmas morning became apparent.
By the time the cortege left the funeral home for the 10km journey to Windgap, St Nicholas parish church in the village was already full.
The funeral congregation spilled out on to the only street in the village. When the hearses arrived on the stroke of midday, the local choir sang Abide With Me.
A guard of honour was formed by the Windgap camogie club, the Mountain View golf club and pupils from the local national school.
The coffins were carried into the church, first that of the youngest Nadia, then Zsara's, which had a camán to mark her involvement in the local camogie club and the work done by her grandfather as a GAA referee and club stalwart, and finally that of Sharon.
The mourners inside were led by Sharon's parents Christy and Nancy Whelan and their four surviving children, John, Paul, David and Linda. Also in the congregation was the president of the GAA, Nickey Brennan.
Parish priest Fr Martin Cleere said there were no words to describe the tragedy that unfolded on Christmas morning. "All we have to do is look at the news and look at the newspapers to see how dark the world is," he said.
Fr Cleere said the Christmas story had brought light to the world. "We have our own angels. We know they are together praising the Lord," he said.
The fire at the isolated farmhouse about two kilometres outside the village on Christmas morning is still being investigated by gardaí.
The incident was initially believed to have been a tragic accident but gardaí are now investigating the possibility that Ms Whelan was strangled before the house was burned to the ground.
The Bishop of Ossory Séamus Freeman noted that yesterday was World Day of Peace. He urged the congregation to pray that those who had to live with the effects of the terrible tragedy should have the serenity to deal with their loss.
"I wish that in the new year of 2009 the light of Christ will banish all the darkness of this world," he said.
Continuing the theme of light and darkness, Sharon's brother David said the three who died in the fire were the "three brightest lights in our family which went out on Christmas morning. Our lives will never be the same."
He described Sharon as a wonderful mother who did not have an easy life bringing up two children on her own, yet ensured that they wanted for nothing.
Mr Whelan said that his parents had looked on Zsara and Nadia as if they were their own children.
"It is so hard to try and make sense of this. I don't think we ever can. When Sharon, Zsara and Nadia left us, they took a huge part of our lives with them," he said.
He thanked the local GAA club, golf club, school, the emergency services and all their friends and neighbours for their support since the tragedy unfolded. Mr Whelan's words were met with applause by the congregation.
Sharon's uncle Pat Hayes told the congregation that President Mary McAleese had phoned from abroad to tell the family that they were in her thoughts and prayers.
Ten priests led the funeral cortege the short distance to the adjoining cemetery for burial.