Heddiw, dim byd newydd

Gold cherry
Poem of the week

By queen beatle

Tue, 25 Mar 2025
  • 475 reads
8 comments
 

I

Home, heard in two ways:

 

1. Water from a wide, shallow bay

drawing up to clouds and down again

 

2. We are now approaching _______ ,

where this train terminates.

 

 

II

09:23: departure, delayed. Dripping

with the people and the pigeons.

 

Typical — a local laugh, uncoated —

good weather for ducks, this is!

 

Ie, mae'n bwrw glaw eto

[eto, eto, eto].

 

...You're all so calm here, not like us back home.

Maybe it's the sound of all this rain, the sea air...

 

Creatures of the swash, are we?

Cocklefolk, mild and moist as laverbread?

 

Ambition's graveyard, this is!

— a local laugh, uncoated —

 

Maybe this is us[, this is!], then:

shell-softened, idled

 

at the terminus, waiting

for departure, delayed, to arrive.

 

Ac ie, mae'n bwrw glaw eto.

 

 

 

¹Translations for lines in Welsh: Heddiw, dim byd newydd - "Today, nothing new"; [Ac] ie, mae'n bwrw glaw eto - "[And] yeah, it's raining again"; eto, eto, eto - "again, again, again".

Certificate U
Poem
Miscellaneous
Inspiration Point (work that responds to our weekly writing cue)

Comments

Submitted by Rhiannonw on

When we were first married, my husband commented it usually seemed to strat raining as we crossed the Severn Bridge! Actually, where my mother lived I think was on a hillside outside Cardiff and the air maybe did rise and drop its rain there more frequently than some nearby. But we learnt to make use of all the gaps between the showers, and the extra water was useful to many in England via reservoirs!

Rhiannon [I wonder how many will google translate your Welsh phrases. I recently gave my son a mug with Welsh words on it and he sent me a photo of it taken with (? Googlelens ?) and it showed all the words translated]

 

Submitted by queen beatle on

Ahh yes, it always seems to be the way! Growing up in Swansea, I always heard that it was the wettest place in the UK; did some googling recently and found out either that's no longer the case or it never was. Still a pretty watery place though, we're a pretty sodden lot.

Hopefully writing the actual title in Welsh wasn't a step too far, haha

 

Submitted by Insertponceyfre... on

Wonderful poem queen - could you please add as a footnote a direct translation for the lines not in English? It's one of our rules. thanks

 

Submitted by queen beatle on

Done! Thanks

 

Submitted by Di_Hard on

This beautiful poem describing how we are shaped by the weather of home, is Pick of the Day! Please do share if you can

the image is from here : https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?search=rain+wales&title=Specia...

please change if you want to

 

Submitted by onemorething on

This is our Poem of the Week! Congratulations! 

 

Submitted by Nolan on

Rain. rain rain, mercy, the promise of new life, the rainbow reminds us gives us hope, rain brings calm, rest, trust, a promise of new life. Where your heart is, there your treasures are.

We had a lot of rain here also believe me! Looks sunny today ... so- we are waiting to depart, everyone loves a holiday even twenty years!

Lovely poetry Morwenna (just sometimes rather cryptic). I am very impressed, not exagerating, your work in general is just excellent I will definitely buy a publication.

& Nolan

 

Submitted by queen beatle on

Thanks Nolan, so kind! Clarity is definitely something I should work on, haha. Same here, rain for days and now a clear blue sky.