A walk into my past
| 19:39 UK time, Monday, 26 May 2008
Having recalled a few stories from my past I was inspired to revisit my old home and surroundings in Aberthaw Road, Newport, where I grew up.
As I approached Alway School where I attended nursery, infant & primary school, the memories came flooding back.
Back then I seemed to spend too much of my time fighting - but it was better to fight than get smashed up and bullied. White shirts always seemed to get the best of me & my dodgy nose, which started bleeding almost before the fight began.
I took a few shots with the video and then took a few of my old house. Again this was dripping with memories. While in Alway I took a girlfriend home after school. I must have been 7 or 8 - my parents laughed - and I stopped bringing girls home from that point on. In fact, when I started going out with Lucy, (we've just passed 30 years together having started going out on May 24th 1978 - and still going strong, one wedding and 2 kids later) my parents knew nothing for over a year. No girlfriends? My mother thought I was gay!
On to the quarry - or to give it its nice title - Liswerry pond. This had changed so much since I was a kid. Now it's surrounded by trees on both sides and loads of fencing. Then, it was full of rubbish, broken bikes, shopping trollies, drowned animals and even the odd dead body.
The walk around was a damp one, but I had brought some bread so the ducks and moorhens were pleased to see me, many of them were on the banks avoiding the rain. I had a chat with a local fisherman who had caught a roach and he pointed out the swans, one of which was sitting on eggs while the other was asleep nearby.
I got chatting and he told me 3 months ago the pond had become home to an OTTER. Good grief, how the place has changed!
The fisherman also pointed out that last year there were geese on the pond but that the swans had killed their young so they left.
I continued on my way and up to a bank where I used to play 'king of the castle'. I used to enjoy the game until one day my dad called me and questioned why I had a red patch on my jeans. A slither of glass was sticking out and 10 stitches later I lost interest in 'king of the castle'.
The large playing field itself was where I used to play loads of sports such as cricket, golf and football. We used to play football so late into the night, we often got buzzed by bats, but I don't know which type. Where was young Iolo when you needed him ;0)
I went off golf when a friend made an excellent shot only to smash me with his club on the follow through. With an egg-sized bump on my head and 15 stiches later, my love of golf died ;0)
Good memories - on this walk into my past.
Comments Post your comment