Analysis of A great week-end

A GREAT WEEK-END

By eight A.M last Saturday
My gang was on the way
For a week-end down in Cardiff
To include St. David’s Day.

The weather wasn’t brilliant
We suffered the odd shower
And the limit on the old M1
Of fifty miles an hour.

The outskirts of the city
Had seen a lot of change
I suppose that after all those years
That shouldn’t seem too strange.

But then in old St. Mary’s Street
My memories unfurled
Back at last in Caerdydd
The centre of the world.

We all enjoyed an Italian lunch
It could have been in Rome
But a couple of pints of Felinfoel
Soon made me feel at home.

Then at nineteen hundred hours
Washed and changed in dress
We made our way to Wharton Street
The United Services Mess.

By now the rain was falling fast
Hissing down I think
But t’was only about a hundred yards
We got there in a wink.

Our President stood to greet us
He offered us his hand
I had re-joined the family
A feeling oh so grand

Of all the people in the bar
I’d met but two before
But within thirty minutes
I’d met a full two score.

It was a wondrous feeling
That moved me near to tears
Back inside the brotherhood
After sixty-three long years.

That wonderful experience
I hope will never fade
But still to come was March the first
And the Dewi Sant parade.

The service in the theatre
Really was unique
The Padre based his sermon
On St. David and the leek.

Later we all took our seats
For the annual parade
I can’t begin to tell you
The impression that it made.

The turnout of our lads in grey
Really made me proud
That once I’d been a tiny part
Of this fantastic crowd.

After we’d received our leeks
We slipped away to eat
At Zizzi’s on the Mermaid Quay
Our lunch was quite a treat.

We made our way towards a pub
Where noise was at a peak
To be welcomed by a hundred men
Each one had worn the leek.

What a night, Yes what a night
I felt once more a boy
Mixing with the Fifth of Foot
Really was a joy.

We got back later to the Royal
They’d closed up for the night
But a gentle pressure on the bell
Soon put the matter right.

All this happened days ago
But still I feel excited
So proud am I to be a part
Of WELSH GUARDS RE-UNITED.

Alan Parry-Booth       3.03.15