I was never one for dancing, always sat on the edge of the disco or waited for the Great Emancipation when the women would do the asking.
   Usually I was slurping down cheapo wine enough to fall over and be trodden on by couples who'd smooch off end of the evening after the Stones' 'Let's spend the night together'.....while I'd return to my digs to write that same self-pitying poem again and again.
   But I do remember the ceilidh with the woman who I went on to marry, above the sea on the creaking boards of the infamous half-pier, the sheer whirl and swirl of it ; the circles and spinning like some ancient Celtic pattern.
   I discovered in India that even a baldy, specky Welsh person in sandals and shorts could be a massive hit on Instagram, trying to copy the moves of a former winner of India's 'Strictly'.
   Sure I was like a fledgling flung early from the nest, but I'd left it all behind....the shyness, the awkwardness......a time-zone, a Continent away.
   And all without the aid of alcohol, just water-propelled like some diving sea-bird.
   I found my hands and arms could become sails and wings and, for an evening, floated and flew in a fantasy of foam and air.   


                                        WEDDING  DANCE
​
' I want the cultures of all lands to be blown about my house as freely as possible.' - Gandhi

The DJ plays
techno Hindi
as bride and groom
wander freely
taking partners
to the intoxicating dance -
hennaed hands link
and here you have
the ceilidh swing
the Bollywood moves
the awkward Western shuffle -
but the wildness
becomes everyone
as we are blown
about and into each other
from so many lands -
Kazakhstan, England, Cymru,
Greece, USA, Canada -
here in this movement
the winds of the world
join together as one -
clap as the couple
tumble walls, reach over seas -
everyone a droplet.   

   After a good while in the political wilderness ( despite a brief spell in Plaid Cymru) it seems strange to be back and an active member of Yes Merthyr, local branch of Yes Cymru( not a movement for the People's Republic of Merthyr!).
   It's  pro-independence and non-partisan and reminds me somewhat of the Welsh Socialist Alliance which may have failed elsewhere, but took off in Merthyr where people of various views joined in.
   The different branches of Yes Cymru are bound to have their own emphasis, but so far I like the predominantly socialist republican leaning of the Merthyr one, though it could change of course.
   Moreover, there's room for revolutionaries who a strictly reformist party would surely eye with suspicion as infiltrators or agent provocateurs.
   Several of us are totally committed to peaceful revolution as the main means of change and a non-partisan group allows for this.
   What heartens me greatly is the positive spirit of those involved.
   The Committee all want to advance the cause of independence for Cymru by focusing on our possibilities as a small, neglected nation.
   There are no cliched daffy dragons or racist English-haters and everybody wants to get the message across that we should not remain a poor appendage .
   I've come up with six ideas which may or may not prove to be useful.....it's early days :-
* Wales has the talent........yet wastes so much of it.
* Energy of rivers , wind and waves.....let's harness all of it.
* Food enough to feed us and more.......let's share the wealth of it.
* Water precious as air......let our people benefit.
* A history of working together .......let's learn from it.
* Cymru has ideas high as mountains........let's celebrate!

   We're launching the branch as part of the Merthyr Rising Festival on Saturday May 26th at Canolfan Soar, Pontmorlais, close to the tent where there will be many performances.
   Singer-songwriter Jamie Bevan and also Red Poets will take part just as the latter did at the Indyfest in Cardiff last year organised by Yes Cymru.
   There will be speakers and music in Welsh and English and Yes Merthyr will also have a stall in the main arena in Dic Penderyn Square ( does 'arena' sound too posh?).
   If we can keep and nurture all the great abilities we possess as a community and country, there's no reason why we can't flourish.
   As a revolutionary I'm not keen on the word 'independence' which suggests that any kind of Wales will suffice.
   I much prefer 'national liberation' which intimates an on-going process and one which influences every level of society.
   But for now it's imperative we argue the case for a better world and Cymru where money's spent on our people's dire needs not on weapons of destruction and where everyone has the opportunity to make decisions.
   This is particularly pertinent at a time when vital decisions about barrages, bridges and military intervention are being taken without our consent.
   It should be a Cymru where, if you have a grievance, it is not just listened to and noted but acted upon.
   Why can't we create a different future?
​

                              A  BRIDGE TOO FAR

This is a bridge too far
for Carlo and Wills after.

They know what's best for us :
the Union, Blue Books and the Not.

We'll need Rebecca's daughters once more,
pitchforks at the Second Severn Crossing.

Y faner goch raised above the girders ;
a new Charter of demands.

Tearing down the name itself
like Cymdeithas with road signs.

For those who've struggled yet keep a vision :
a bridge called Pont y Werin.

      

   Neil Warnock cost me £57. Doubt I'll ever get it back though.
   No, it wasn't a bet on Cardiff City going up via the play-offs rather than automatically. Actually, I cost myself the money by using an image of our beloved manager holding aloft our shirt and posting it as part of my blog.
   I had to pay the Press Association copywright, despite the fact I'd withdrawn it. In future, I'll check for free photos and use older ones by Jon Candy like the one above of a fella who used to sit in front of us and go beserk.
   As our players testify Warnock is the very best at man-management and also a motivator who can raise the game of players to astonishing levels. Above all, he creates an amazing 'squad' spirit.
   I emphasize 'squad' because it isn't about just a team any more and with the number of serious injuries we've experienced  , the entire squad has contributed ( well, apart from the mysteriously disappearing Frederic Gougonbe). 
   We are sitting in second spot in the Championship, seven points ahead of third-placed Fulham with a game in hand, their winning sequence even better than our eight-game one.
   Coming up are very tricky fixtures away to Sheffield Utd and home to Wolves, who rightly occupy top spot.
   Friday's match at home to Wolves will be a sell-out and I'll miss it because of a poetry event.....there's dedication to verse for you!
   Significantly, our key midfielder Aron Gunnarsson - captain of an Iceland team who have qualified for the World Cup - is returning to full fitness after an operation and could well prove crucial in the coming matches.
   Our best signing of the January transfer window has been Serbian international Marko Grujic on loan from Liverpool and whenever he's played we have yet to lose a League game. With Gunnars slotting into the holding role, I believe Grujic will have the freedom to play his more natural box-to-box game.
   Joe Ralls - another midfielder who has been consistently good all season    - soon returns from injury and provides Warnock with a real dilemma. How can he leave out the Scotsman Callum Paterson, signed as a full-back, whose goal-scoring record has been stunning.
   Up front, Junior Hoilett is my player of the season without a doubt and 11 assists and 10 goals ( 2 in Cup matches) shows his attacking contribution. Big Ken Zohore and Mendez-Laing have returned to their best form just at the right time : both are powerful, fast and direct.
   Defensively we've been very sound all season and our best centre-back partnership is definitely Morrison and Bamba, both players strong, committed and a real threat on set pieces. Bennett has made the left-back position his own , while either Peltier or Manga have played well at right-back in the absence of Welsh international and Swonzee Boy Jazz Richards.
   Of course, I ought to be more wary......just because Warnock has achieved promotion from the Championship so many times before, doesn't guarantee success.
   But what I love about our squad was typified by the away game at Brentford before the International break.
   Within the first ten minutes, our keeper Neil Etheridge had made a superb save and then they scored. They were outplaying us totally!
   Yet by half-time we were 2-1 up with a spectacular effort from Sol Bamba and typical timed shot from Paterson. Zohore made it 3-1 in the second half and, in the end, they'd run out of ideas.
   I haven't lauded our keeper, but he deserves high praise. Coming from Walsall, he has gradually adapted and now looks a perfect replacement for fans' favourite Marshall.
  So, we dare to dream and I really hope we get to play Swansea next season ( in the Premiership, that is!).
   Sean Dyche the manager of Burnley has shown this season that you don't have to be a mega-rich club to thrive and I hope we can emulate them. 

                                        ALMOST  THERE

We're almost there -
I can glimpse
copa'r mynydd,
but the mist descends.

I see the ship
on the horizon -
but is it heading
for our port?

I'm waiting for the sun
to return after winter
hibernation down south,
to strike with glory.

The cuckoo will call,
crocuses point upwards,
the lambs spring
and Bluebirds fly.

We're almost there -
the last climb
on jagged rocks
with crevices ahead.

I prefer to look up,
I fear the heights,
so easy to trip -
look, there's the top!