Atgofion o wres a phla

Atgofion o wres a phla ~ Memories of heat and plague

“Of all the means of expression, photography is the only one that fixes forever the precise and transitory instant. We photographers deal in things that are continually vanishing, and when they have vanished, there is no contrivance on earth that can make them come back again. [...] for photographers, what has gone is gone forever.”
—Henri Cartier-Bresson

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Es i redeg heddiw am y tro cyntaf ers gwyliau, salwch, a thywydd poeth. Roedd hi'n 5k araf, bron fel cyflymder cerdded, ond roed hi'n ddechreuad. Roedd cymylau yn yr awyr a doedd y tywydd ddim yn rhy boeth. Yn hwyrach roedd ychydig o law ysgafn ac awel groeso.

Ond mae pethau yn gadael ei marciau ar y byd. Yn y maes mae thermomedr ar y wal, dŵr ar gyfer cŵn sychedig poeth, a siglenni. Mae'r siglenni yn atgof o gyfyngiadau symud, pan gawson i'r cyngor i aros agos adre. Doedd dim siglenni yn y maes felly gwnaeth pobol yn rhoi siglenni dros dro yno. Mae'n atgof - a all yn wir gael ei anghofio ar unrhyw bryd - fel rheiliau coll yn atgof o ryfel.

Dydw i ddim yn gwybod os unrhyw pobol yn dal yn aros agos adre, ond roeddwn i’n meddwl, am gyfnod, bod roedd mwy o werthfawrogiad o'r bro. Rydw i'n gobeithio bod pobl yn ei gofio.

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I went running today for the first time since holidays, illness, and hot weather. It was a slow 5k, almost like walking pace, but it was a start. There were clouds in the sky and the weather wasn't too hot. Later there was some light rain and a welcome breeze.

But things leave their marks on the world. In the field there is a thermometer on the wall, water for hot thirsty dogs, and swings. The swings are a reminder of lockdowns, when we were advised to stay close to home. There were no swings in the field so people made temporary swings there. It is a memory - which can indeed be forgotten at any time - like missing rails are a memory of war.

I don't know if any people still stay close to home, but I thought, for a while, that there was a greater appreciation of the locality. I hope people remember it.

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