I read some far-off words.
This is no bamboo mountain
yet here too the natural stillness
creeps from the stones and trees
as in my secret heart I discover
my lone home.
Thinking of you and the passing years
of war and waste, treaties broken
and pledges meaningless,
the rise in prices and the difficulty of travel
passports and regulations,
I am comforted to know that old officials
in your ancient land also knew
the weariness of worldly noise,
that little changes in a thousand years
is proven true.
Time and space are endless
and only a fool finds a comfortable way.
Maenllwyd 1994
A dance in which partners frequently change: a good way to engender conviviality, “breaking the ice” in the rather formal dance occasions of the period.