Signpost 44 (1 March)

REFLECT

• R. S. Thomas is one of Wales’ greatest poets and was also an Anglican priest who was well known for religious themes and a strong sense of spirituality. You can listen to him reciting his poem “In Church” here . You may also enjoy Richard Burton reciting two poems, “The Priest and the Peasant” and “The Lonely Farmer” here. If you would like to find out more about R.S. Thomas, the Poetry Foundation has an interesting article about his life here.

CONNECT

• The internet is a great resource for finding out more about faraway countries and languages, but you can also explore things on your doorstep! If you have ever fancied learning Welsh, why not try these ‘Welsh for Beginners’ videos. If you are willing to open an account then you could also try learning the language with Duolingo or LearnWelsh.

LEARN

• The name “St. David” is well used across Wales, with the city of St. Davids in West Wales (Britain’s smallest city!), as well as Cardiff’s St. Davids Hall and St. Davids College to name a few landmarks! But who was St. David? You can read more about him here and the BBC has an article entitled “St David: Ten things about the Patron Saint of Wales”.

• Set a few miles outside Cardiff, St. Donats is a tiny village with a world-famous castle. St. Donats Castle was built in the 13^th century but it's most famous resident was the newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst. Click here to watch some archive footage of Hearst at St. Donats. You can read about the castle here and watch a video from Welsh weatherman Derek Brockway here.

DO

• Although we can’t get to Wales at the moment, there are many things we can do virtually! Have you ever wanted to experience coasteering in Pembrokeshire, white water rafting in Cardiff or diving with dolphins in West Wales?

FUN

• If you are looking for something to cheer you up, watch an episode or two of Gavin and Stacey! It does require you to log in to BBC iPlayer, but you can watch all of the episodes and enjoy some behind the scenes videos.