Thursday 27 October 2016

Reading the Paper

Reading my Daily Telegraph today I came across the photo below, used as an advert by some company or other. It was of Dylan Thomas and his wife Caitlin in c.1938 in his regular watering hole of Brown's Hotel, Laugharne in Wales. It is one of my favourite photos of Dylan Thomas.


I first discovered Thomas in the mid 1960's, curious to see who it was that Bob Dylan had allegedly named himself after. I began with his poetry, wrote poetry in a similar vein and becoming hooked, looked deeper into his life and found someone that I could easily admire and identify with. All these years later, looking back through the various books that I have collected about his life, it is clear that in many ways the facts of his life were falsely presented, although he did work hard at times to give people the image that they expected. And oh to have the balls to do what he did, aged 39, and literally drink himself to death one night because he couldn't face being forty. I can't say I like a lot of his poetry, just a dozen or so exceptional ones, but his stories, including the great Under Milk Wood, are fantastic, but for me there is one outright winner. Dylan reciting his "A Child's Christmas in Wales". To listen to that, in his beautiful Welsh voice, reminds me so much of how my childhood winters were.
In the same paper, a female columnist was going off about the fact that the Pope has decreed that the practice of keeping a loved one's ashes at home should be forbidden, or scattering them somewhere for that matter. I have no interest in religion at all and was moving on until one thing in her column caught my eye and made me chuckle. Did you know that there are some companies who will happily bake your loved one's ashes into a drinking mug, that's taking having a drink with your dad a bit too far! 
On the subject of loved one's ashes as well, I've always been intrigued as to what exactly is in those urns that people have on their mantle-piece or wherever. Are they really the ashes of a loved one, or the ashes from a coffin, or a mixture of the two - anybody know?

9 comments:

  1. I too am a Dylan fan (both Dylans for that matter Derek.
    As to the ashes question - it is one I prefer not to think about!!

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  2. Good to hear of your love of both of the Dylans Pat, we'll leave the ashes at that then.

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  3. In the US, at least, the ashes are now referred to by the ridiculous term "cremains".

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  4. Gawd, that is a silly name Wilma and one that's bound to catch on here.

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  5. You've reminded me to have a re-read of some Dylan Thomas poetry. Thank you. It's also about time that I had another look at A Child's Christmas in Wales.

    About ashes of loved ones, I won't leave a comment, though I have many thoughts. Easier for me to have such conversations in person.

    Best wishes.

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  6. If you can get hold of a recording of Dylan reading A Child's Christmas, Frances, it'll be really worthwhile, it's so funny at times as well as being a piece of real nostalgia.
    As for ashes, well I've never really seen the attraction of a pot of ash sitting around in the house.

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    Replies
    1. I will look for a recording. It's possible that my truly fabulous library will have a copy. You would probably love The New York Society Library...have a look at its site, www.nysoclib.org

      Best wishes.

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  7. Your library does indeed look quite magnificent Frances. Apparently Dylan Thomas reciting A Child's Christmas in Wales can be found on You Tube.

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  8. I was present in Dylan's house on stilts when a poltergeist repeatedly banged a wooden rail holding a tapestry or something of that nature against the wall until it fell to the floor. A group of Americans watching a video of Dylan's life looked hard at me because I was sitting nearest the spot when it happened. I think it was Dylan himself who was responsible because I had been thinking what would Dylan make of this nonsense, a dozen Americans sitting in his bedroom watching a small TV.

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