Okolo Hradišťa

We sang this new song in choir tonight and after another covid hiatus, it was wonderful to be back again singing. It was conductor Jamie’s birthday, so like a good pupil I bought him some flowers, he’s a good sort putting practice over birthday celebrations .

We sang happy birthday to him and five other choristers, whose birthdays we have missed because of covid ( we sing in in harmony to an old Slovakian hymn)

I could see Heulwen, getting emotional as she stood listening when it was her turn.

Today has been a good day. 

I finally cleared the attic cupboard and took the crap to the recycling centre. Then I popped some homemade brownies to a friend who is off work with stress and finally I cleaned Bluebell inside and out. Affable Despot Jason stopped briefly with his rambunctious dogs straining at their leads at Mrs Trellis with Blue who was walking back up the lane . Neither me or he was anyway surprised when Mrs Trellis disappeared up my drive to hide behind Bluebell until he had passed.

It’s a habit she does when meeting any dog in the village. 

 

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Netflix

Olivia Colman in "The Lost Daughter" (2021)

There's a lot of dross on "Netflix". On more occasions than I can calculate, I have begun watching films via "Netflix" only to give up after ten minutes or so.. Too predictable. Too amateurish. Too bloody boring.

Nonetheless, having also had some really good viewing experiences courtesy of the viewing platform, I knew that it contained some gems. It was surely just a question of rooting them out - like picking over a skip filled with rubbish (American: dumpster).

Rather than going straight to "Netflix" on our television, I decided to do a bit of googling - seeing if I could find a bunch of independently recommended films that might appeal to me.

That's how I chased down "The Lost Daughter" (2021) and "The Master" (2012).

"The Lost Daughter", directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal is set in an Italian summer and stars Olivia Colman as Leda. There are psychological undercurrents linked to past events and the air is heavy with "if only's" and "what might have beens", guilt and uncertainty. Things are not spelt out. You have to make assumptions and your own conclusions. What did it all mean? Olivia Colman was as brilliant as she always is, again demonstrating her incredible range as a film actress.

"The Master" focuses upon two men. There's Freddie played by Joaquin Phoenix and Lancaster Dodd played by Philip Seymour Hoffman.  Freddie is an alcoholic and troubled World War II veteran. He has demons to battle. Dodd is a clever charlatan and pseudo-intellectual who has harnessed the power of his personality to lead a semi-religious cult that is often referred to as "The Cause". There may be deliberate echoes of the growth of Scientology. He gathers people around him, including Freddie. Perhaps typical of cult leaders, Dodd often seems to believe in his own fiction.

Both films held my attention throughout. Neither was made for easy entertainment. They were well-crafted and clever and they were not filled with the sound of guns or the sight of gratuitous murders as many films are. They were both about imperfect people and how they relate to one another, what they learn and where their journeys lead. I like films like that.

Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman in "The Master" (2012)

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Never enough

 In my soul

In my heart

In my mind

Even when 

I don’t think

You are

You are

And for that

A thousand thanks

Are never enough

Three things of gratitude

The gift Lord of what you provide

The yellow and blue who show me how to live

The dog whose love doesn’t fail

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Hill of Arrows

Today I have got very little planned.

After a think at the kitchen table with a bucket of coffee, I decided to clear the cupboard in my bedroom that leads up to the attic.

When my little Bathroom man arrives , he will need access up there to put in an electric shower.

The whole cupboard was crammed with junk.

A broken Lloyd loom laundry basket, a broken lampshade, old papers and moulding eiderdown, the usual crap you hide away from sight …everything was thrown into the front garden much to the surprise of locals walking up and down the lane.

In a rather dusty old suitcase I found a photocopied publication dating from 1910. I have no recollection of having it.

Tucked behind the Welsh text was a translation of the this book which was described as the

This is the winning Essay

Submitted for the Newmarket Eisteddfod

Held on the 1st August 1910

Written in welsh by R.T Williams ( pseudonym Trevor Mon)

Entitled

“ Newmarket, it’s Antiquity, Biography and Present History”

For those that don’t know Newmarket is the old name for Trelawnyd.

I fell into a few hours of reading, sat in the window seat of my bedroom. The book sharing the history of the village from as far back as the Welsh tribes who lived on the land before the Romans arrived.

It’s a fascinating read and much of the information within its pages was new to me. The old, ancient names of hills that surround the village interested me the most. Bryn Y Saethau ( Hill of Arrows) , Bryn Y Lladdfa ( The Hill Of Slaughter) and Bryn Y Coaches ( Hill Of The War Chariots) all conjure up ancient battles and folklore 

The text also features biographies on local ( men) from the turn of the century as well as detailed descriptions of local houses and their histories, forays into local folklore, and discussions about Marriages  and everyday life of an Edwardian Welsh Village.

I’m happy to provide anyone local who is interested in reading this essay a copy . All I ask is that they pay a 5£ fee which will be donated to the Memorial Hall.

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