The Tiger Poet vs. 2014

And so we've come to the end of another year. It seems like only last week that I started writing this blog, but considering that I started in June this isn't such a dramatic opening to a post. With New Year's Eve upon us and the inevitable revelries about to start, I've decided to take some time out and reflect upon the year just gone. To try and sum it up in full is a task for someone better qualified than me, so I'll give my own perspective on what has made 2014 a truly eventful year.

The first big event this year was this blog being created. Anyone who's read my first post will know that I decided to start a blog due to being on a creative writing course at university, and that it seemed quite appropriate. You may also know that I was originally called something else, but that I had to change my name when I discovered that somebody else had taken it. I chose my current name due to a lot of my poetry having a recurring theme involving tigers. I know I haven't discussed this theme in detail this year, so expect more tiger poetry in the New Year, as well as more stuff to start arriving on the YouTube channel.

Two other big events I saw this year as the Tiger Poet were the centenary of Dylan Thomas and my trip to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Seeing a poet as famous as Dylan Thomas being celebrated for his poetry gave me an extra boost to get my own work out there. Despite the fact that the only thing I have in common with Thomas is being Welsh, the discussion of his poetry inspired me to increase my own output and to further my understanding of poetry.

Then there was the Edinburgh Fringe, where I was astounded by the sheer volume of creativity on display, and where I first saw performance poetry somewhere other than university. Aside from the music and theatre I also saw, it was Kevin P. Gilday is the Man Who Loved Beer which gave me first-hand experience of how spoken word is performed in a live setting. I have always noted how performance poets always seem to perform their work at the same pitch and with the same tone. In Gilday's case however, his delivery was entirely suitable to the subject matter, and now I realise that this point can be modified if the poet has a strong individual voice. Gilday certainly had that and I look forward to seeing some more spoken word in the future.

The big event in Wales this year was of course the NATO summit held at the Celtic Manor in Newport. It was perhaps the single biggest event to be held in Newport in living memory, and the arrival of Barack Obama caused more than a stir in South Wales. The first US president to visit Wales left the Welsh people somewhat star-struck, and he brought a three thousand strong entourage with him. The most important outcome of the summit was the ceasefire in Ukraine, which was announced by President Poroshenko on the Celtic Manor's lawn. However my main memory of the summit will be the Osprey V22 which flew over my house. Never before had Frynwys seen anything like it, and I doubt we'll be seeing much like it again.

For me personally, starting my third and final year at university has been a defining event of 2014. Soon my studies will be at an end, and I face the daunting prospect of graduating and going off into the big wide world of work. Quite what I intend to do beyond that is a mystery to me at the moment, but I intend to carry on with this blog and to bring you content on a regular basis. This year my output has been on and off at the best of times, but going forward I will make it my New Year's resolution to bring you new posts at least every week. In the last few months I've tried to keep a consistent schedule, but with the new year will come more new and exciting things.

So, that's it. The year is done and dusted. All I can say now is goodbye to 2014. It's been a fun year, but all eyes are now turning towards the clock for the countdown to the New Year. Hope you all enjoy the fireworks and I'll see you all in 2015.

Happy New Year everyone!

The Tiger Poet vs. NATO

Finally, something happened in my village. Well, actually it happened in Newport and Cardiff, but they're just an hour down the road from me so it's close enough.

It is of course no secret that the 2014 NATO summit was held at the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport a week and a half ago over the course of two days. In that time all sorts of things happened. Even before the summit began, mile after mile of metal fencing, now called the "Ring of Steel", was put up around the Celtic Manor and stretched back all the way to Cardiff Castle. Security and police forces were drafted in across the UK to ensure that the first serving US President to visit Wales had a safe and pleasant trip. Sixty six world leaders turned up for the summit, along with the biggest show of military might Wales has seen in a long while.

I wasn't aware that NATO was coming to Wales until I heard about it on the news. I saw the Ring of Steel when I went past the Celtic Manor on my way to Edinburgh, and by the time I returned the security presence was being felt across Newport. Shortly before the summit was due to start, I had a close encounter with US security forces when an Osprey V22 flew over my house. It was probably searching for potential assassins or bombs and the like, but it was a clear indicator that the US Air Force has never visited South Wales before.

Thursday arrived, and so too did Barack Obama with David Cameron and the rest of NATO. Quite what Obama made of Wales wasn't initially clear, but when he visited Mount Pleasant Primary School in Rogerstone he greeted the children by saying "bore da". I never thought I'd see the day. Then the summit began in earnest, with items on the agenda including the fighting in Ukraine, the crisis in Iraq and various other things. On the Friday evening it was over, and the world leaders all went home again.

Now what was I doing during all of this you might ask? Well, I'm ashamed to admit that I slept through the flypast of the Red Arrows and military aircraft on the Friday morning. I did however manage to go and see HMS Duncan and the other ships docked in Roath Basin in Cardiff Bay. Although they weren't the biggest ships in the world, HMS Duncan reached the height of some of the nearby apartment buildings. The fencing and the constant police presence added to the feeling that something extremely important was occurring in the Welsh capital.

Whether the NATO summit will have any lasting benefits for Wales remains to be seen. Certainly Obama seemed impressed by the Welsh people, and it looked like the other world leaders were too. Then there was the Ukrainian president, Petro Poroshenko, announcing to the world on the lawn of the Celtic Manor that a ceasefire had been reached in Ukraine. It gave the impression that the summit had actually achieved something, although fighting is currently continuing in the country.

It would be tempting to discuss the issues faced by NATO, such as the situation in Iraq, the fighting in Syria, and the conflict in Ukraine. It would also be tempting to examine how effective NATO has been in achieving its aims. While from my point of view, NATO appears to be making ground on these problems, the situations they are faced with are far too complex for simple military action to set right. I say this, but then I wouldn't know what the correct answer to these challenges would be. I'll leave those questions to the political commentators.

So, there we are. Something finally happened in South Wales, and it just happened to be NATO who decided to drop in. I doubt I'll have a lot to talk about following this, but expect a poem or two in the next few days.