R S Thomas (poet)

Text of poem - Looking. I thought I heard a voice saying to me: 'Don't look now, but I made them, too.' What was I here for but to look? Through knotted fingers, a prisoner at a grating, I peered out at the men at the boardroom tables with no 'God is love' hanging on the wallpaper behind them; at others bent over their retorts, accomplices in the escape of the djinn out of its bottle. I saw the inventors of the white lie exporting it to a third world where truth was in tatters. I listened to the hands, expert on the guitar, tuning the human instrument until the strings broke. I saw the dove plucked of its feathers by too much fondling at the peace conference, and beat on the sky for an explanation. But the voice said: ‘I warned you not to look’.

‘Looking’ - #RSThomas
(The Poetry Book Society Anthology 1988-1989, Hutchinson)
#Edrych
#Bardd #Barddoniaeth #Cerdd
#Poet #Poetry #Poem

Save the dates!!
RS Thomas & ME Eldridge Poetry & Arts Festival
June 18-21 in Aberdaron
Theme is "Abercuawg"
Rowan Williams, Jason Walford-Davies, Clare e. Potter, & more
Tickets on sale later in March
rsthomaspoetry.co.uk

‘Pact’ - #RSThomas
(Uncollected Poems, @BloodaxeBooks)
🕊️

Hello, if you like #RSThomas then you might be interested in following this Bluesky account @RSThomaspoet, also facebook.com/groups/RSThomas/
- share his poems, quotes, events, info, Q+A, etc.
- and there’s a Society you can join… rsthomaspoetry.co.uk/rs-thomas-me-eldridge-society/
please re-post?

‘The Moor’ - #RSThomas
(Pietà, Rupert Hart-Davis)

Save the dates!!
RS Thomas & ME Eldridge Poetry & Arts Festival
June 18-21 in Aberdaron
Theme is "Abercuawg"
Rowan Williams, Jason Walford-Davies, Clare e. Potter, & more
Tickets on sale later in March
rsthomaspoetry.co.uk

Text of poem - Looking. I thought I heard a voice saying to me: 'Don't look now, but I made them, too.' What was I here for but to look? Through knotted fingers, a prisoner at a grating, I peered out at the men at the boardroom tables with no 'God is love' hanging on the wallpaper behind them; at others bent over their retorts, accomplices in the escape of the djinn out of its bottle. I saw the inventors of the white lie exporting it to a third world where truth was in tatters. I listened to the hands, expert on the guitar, tuning the human instrument until the strings broke. I saw the dove plucked of its feathers by too much fondling at the peace conference, and beat on the sky for an explanation. But the voice said: ‘I warned you not to look’.

‘Looking’ - #RSThomas
(The Poetry Book Society Anthology 1988-1989, Hutchinson)
#Edrych
#Bardd #Barddoniaeth #Cerdd
#Poet #Poetry #Poem

Text of poem - Welsh Resort. R. S. Thomas. And always the south darkening for rain And the wind rising ... There are children here Who can sing. God knows their reason Not I, who see them making For manhood or womanhood with their heads] Empty, their hearts hardened against the Thrift, that in the old was counted For wisdom. They serve the machine Gladly, that takes their praise Like a god, smiling inscrutably To itself, doing the work They were meant for. In summer will come The manipulators of the machine With the dividends these cannot inherit.

‘Welsh Resort’ - #RSThomas
(Planet 1, 1970)
#Bardd #Barddoniaeth #Cerdd
#Poet #Poetry #Poem

Hello, if you like #RSThomas then you might be interested in following this Bluesky account @RSThomaspoet, also facebook.com/groups/RSThomas/
- share his poems, quotes, events, info, Q+A, etc.
- and there’s a Society you can join… rsthomaspoetry.co.uk/rs-thomas-me-eldridge-society/
please re-post?

‘No Through Road’ - #RSThomas
(Song at the Year's Turning, Rupert Hart-Davis)

Text of poem - Welsh Resort. R. S. Thomas. And always the south darkening for rain And the wind rising ... There are children here Who can sing. God knows their reason Not I, who see them making For manhood or womanhood with their heads] Empty, their hearts hardened against the Thrift, that in the old was counted For wisdom. They serve the machine Gladly, that takes their praise Like a god, smiling inscrutably To itself, doing the work They were meant for. In summer will come The manipulators of the machine With the dividends these cannot inherit.

‘Welsh Resort’ - #RSThomas
(Planet 1, 1970)
#Bardd #Barddoniaeth #Cerdd
#Poet #Poetry #Poem

That’s a real treasure!

For those who can’t find a copy of this CD set, it’s still accessible on Spotify and YouTube.

‘Pact’ - #RSThomas
(Uncollected Poems, @BloodaxeBooks)
🕊️

Haha, chwarae teg!🤣😂

RS Thomas & ME Eldridge Poetry & Arts Festival RS Thomas & ME Eldridge Gwyl Gelf a Barddoniaeth

Cytuno'n llwyr, er ei bod hi hefyd yn werth ymweld â hi ym mis Mehefin (llai tawel) ar gyfer Gŵyl flynyddol RS Thomas a ME Eldridge rsthomaspoetry.co.uk

It was published in 1975, about 3 years before he retired from Eglwys Hywyn Sant. You’re right about the sound of the sea there. Also it was a resting place for pilgrims on their way to Ynys Enlli.

‘Drowning’ - #RSThomas
(Welsh Airs, Poetry Wales Press)

‘The Welsh Hill Country’ - #RSThomas
(An Acre of Land, Montgomeryshire Printing Co)

‘The Moon in Lleyn’ - #RSThomas
(Laboratories of the Spirit, Macmillan)

‘Pact’ - #RSThomas
(Uncollected Poems, @BloodaxeBooks)
🕊️

Hello, if you like #RSThomas then you might be interested in following this Bluesky account @RSThomaspoet, also facebook.com/groups/RSThomas/
- share his poems, quotes, events, info, Q+A, etc.
- and there’s a Society you can join… rsthomaspoetry.co.uk/rs-thomas-me-eldridge-society/
please re-post?

‘Drowning’ - #RSThomas
(Welsh Airs, Poetry Wales Press)

Dydd Gwyl Dewi Hapus i bawb!
Happy St David's Day to everyone!
"Gwnewch y pethau bychain - Do the little things"
'Llanddewi Brefi' by #RSThomas (Uncollected Poems, Bloodaxe Books)

Diolch, thank you 😊🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Shwmae, os dych chi'n mwynhau #RSThomas, falle bydd diddordeb gyda chi yn dilyn @RSThomaspoet ar Bluesky, ac yn facebook.com/groups/RSThomas/ - rhannu pethau gan RS Thomas, neu am RS Thomas. Hefyd mae ‘na gymdeithas: rsthomaspoetry.co.uk/rs-thomas-me-eldridge-society/
…plîs ail-bostio?

Dydd Gwyl Dewi Hapus i bawb!
Happy St David's Day to everyone!
"Gwnewch y pethau bychain - Do the little things"
'Llanddewi Brefi' by #RSThomas (Uncollected Poems, Bloodaxe Books)

Hello, if you like #RSThomas then you might be interested in following this Bluesky account @RSThomaspoet, also facebook.com/groups/RSThomas/
- share his poems, quotes, events, info, Q+A, etc.
- and there’s a Society you can join… rsthomaspoetry.co.uk/rs-thomas-me-eldridge-society/
please re-post?

Hello, if you like #RSThomas then you might be interested in following this Bluesky account @RSThomaspoet, also facebook.com/groups/RSThomas/
- share his poems, quotes, events, info, Q+A, etc.
- and there’s a Society you can join… rsthomaspoetry.co.uk/rs-thomas-me-eldridge-society/
please re-post?

‘The Kingdom’ - #RSThomas
(H'm, Macmillan)