2018 Reunion

THE 26th ABER FOOTBALL REUNION 2018

The date of the Aber reunion is a simple calculation and, more and more necessary these days, easy to remember: the first weekend after Easter. Given Easter Sunday's alternative name of Resurrection Sunday it has a resonance as we drag our ageing bones (and more than a few brand new ones too) to Aber yet again. When Easter is early like this we take a chance with the weather, not renowned for its benevolence at the best of times in west Wales. For several years now we have been blessed with sunshine but when it fails us, as it appeared on the Friday that it would, talk turned to just why Easter is so moveable. We knew vaguely that it had something to do with the full moon and the equinox. So I decided to look it up. I was sorry that I did. In case you are keen to know so you can plan for future reunions, here is the concise version:

“Easter does not fall on a fixed date in the Gregorian or Julian calendars, which follow only the cycle of the sun; rather, its date is determined on a lunisolar calendar similar to the Hebrew calendar. The First Council of Niceae (325) established two rules, independence of the Jewish calendar and worldwide uniformity- the only rules for Easter explicitly laid down by the council. No details for the computation were specified; these were worked out in practice, a process that took centuries and generated a number of controversies [Really?]. It has come to be the first Sunday after the ecclesiastical full moon that occurs on or soonest after 21 March, but calculations vary [Surprise!].... In 725, Bede succinctly wrote, 'The Sunday following the full Moon which falls on or after the equinox will give the lawful Easter.' However, this does not precisely reflect the ecclesiastical rules. The full moon referred to (called the Pascal full moon)) is not an astronomical full moon, but the 14^th day of a calendar lunar month. Another difference is that the astronomical equinox is a natural astronomical phenomenon, which can fall on 19, 20 or 21 March, while the ecclesiastical date is fixed by convention on 21 March.....”. I am glad that I sorted that out for you. The Gregorian calculation of Easter was based on a method devised by the Calabrian doctor Aloysius Lillius for adjusting the epacts (?) of the moon and has been adopted by almost all Western countries. I won't go into the Eastern Orthodox dating, since they - of course - use the Julian calendar where 21st March corresponds to April 3^rd...

After the excitement of the 25^th Anniversary numbers returned to more normal levels and, in the case of the golf, somewhat less than normal. In the alternative Masters, in Georgia, a warm-up par 3 competition is held in advance of the tournament. We do things differently in Wales. The warm-up is an 18 hole endurance test in the stormy hills above Aberystwyth, to be followed by a gentler 9 hole tournament in what is little more than a par 3, the Penrhos Red Kite course in Llanrystud. Just 3 of us played in the wind and cold of Aber on the Friday with Dave Charles (note: former Aber Golf Club member) winning rather easily from Derrick Spragg and myself and chipping in for a birdie on the 18^th just to rub it in.

We were back in plenty of time to gather for the karaoke night at Aber Town: indeed so much time that we wondered if we had arrived on the wrong day; there was no one else around. Derrick had arranged a taxi and Mildred, Jeanette and myself went with him – arriving about an hour before anyone else. Others finally turned up and 25 people sat down to- once again- a very good meal. Tiggy had suggested entertainment (since our own singing could hardly be classed as that). Gwion, provided it- and it was super. Gwion turned out to be not just personable but a very good singer, whether it was pop songs, from our time or a just little more recent, or in Welsh. Gwion is managed by Huw Bates as is Kedmarr, who gave an amazing vocal performance ahead of an audition she was attending in London the following day. She was no doubt impressed with the talent that followed her on stage.

It was a long and fun session- at least for us; just long for Gwion. Highlights were many, though perhaps not as many as the lowlights. Of course Jim took centre stage and did a surprisingly good rendition, with Pete, of “Only Make believe”. He followed it with a song of dubious quality and veracity - “Dedicated Follower of Fashion”. As Derrick's “Great Balls of Fire” ended, the words “That was electric” were heard. From Derrick.

Never one to miss the chance of an entrance, Lev arrived in during the meal, having travelled to Aber via exotic places such as China,Vietnam, Paris and Birmingham. He joined Pete and Howard for an impressive version of “Out of Time”, though I was not sure if he kept his eyes closed with emotion or just tiredness. Lev and Jim struggled with the high notes of “Total Eclipse of the Heart” and Lev definitely had his eyes closed when singing “I'm a little bit nervous that the best of my years have gone by”. Jim graciously treated me to “High Ho Silver Lining” - though he might have sung the proper words:“High Ho Wolver'ampton”, especially as news came through of Wolves beating 2^nd place Cardiff.

It was a while before the ladies took the stage but they did so led by another irrepressible Kettle in Beryl and backed by Siân, Kathy, Mildred, Shirley and Jeanette. They, joined on and off by others, did big numbers well such “Those were the Days” (and they were, weren't they?), a rousing arm-waving “Sweet Caroline” and of course “Thank you for the Music”. Rita initially shy, was prevailed on for - together with Gwion, Derrick and full ladies backing group- “Mustang Sally”. Louie was part of the accompaniment for Tiggy's “The Night Has 1,000 Eyes” before the traditional ending of proceedings with “Blue Suede Shoes” from Derrick and a misty-eyed “Stewball” from all. Thanks to Tiggy and Huw for arranging a great night- and Huw even sang ; it was “Leaving on a Jet Plane”. For Lev, maybe.

Saturday arrived grey and wet. There was little talk of the walk that morning, but golfers are made of sterner stuff (or at least some are) and, with the famous Masters green jacket at stake, three of us headed to Llanrhystud. In the sheltered little valley of Penrhos the weather was not too bad, though the golf was at times. Leading by 3 points from Derrick with two holes to go I had it won. Then came the golfers dread - shank followed by shank. It then came down to the last putt on the 9^th which Derrick, nerveless, sank to win the jacket back from me, with Ken in 3^rd place. The ladies, meanwhile, had been drinking a cocktail (or two in many cases) in the well-named and probably very cosy Libertine, not knowing just how much they were missing out on the fresh and breezy golf course .

Dinner was in the Marine of course and, not listening to Derrick's timetable, we got the timing right. The dinner was a most enjoyable occasion. I saw Rita eyeing the mountains of leftover vegetables nostalgically. I was asked to be MC by Derrick, but I knew there was no question involved. We had Ken's update on absent friends and Rob Culley's sad story of the loss of Keith Bevan. Derrick received the famous Masters green jacket and John Ansell gave a brief comment on the walk. Very brief. We missed Dave Charles for the golf, though he nearly won the jacket. In a cowardly moment I had gently suggested skipping the game and giving the jacket to Dave for his performance on the Friday, but Ken and Derrick were determined to play despite the weather. However Dave came up trumps when it came to the music. Sing-songs depend on a lot of different factors being right and, whatever about last year, they certainly were this time. Dave performed his magic on the guitar and we sang ourselves back in time and maybe place in a lovely evening, finishing with a bi-lingual Welsh selection including “Hymns and Arias”, a touching “Myfanwy” and once again “Yma O Hyd”. We are still here and, please God, will be next year.

Sunday was remarkably bright, clear and sunny and though perhaps a little chilly it made for a lovely walk down to kick the bar. As usual people were mugged to take our photos and we even bagged a former lecturer this time. Off to JD's to sit outside and chat over a long, lingering last coffee before heading our various ways home- Lev to complete his round-the-world trip, Dick to faraway Glasgow, us across the sea to Ireland and all others just a bit closer. We are looking forward to next year already, especially since - thanks to Aloysius Lillius - Easter is almost 3 weeks later than this year!

Des Drumm, April 2018

Thanks to the organisers: Ken and Ann, Jim and Beryl, John and Shirley, Derek and Mildred, Tiggy and Marilyn and to Dave.

Attendees :

Jim and Beryl Kettle

Rob and Gaynor Culley

Derek and Mildred Spragg

Ken and Ann Passmore

John and Shirley Ansell

Howard and Sian Phillips

Huw and Ellen Evans

Dave and Rose Charles

Des and Jeanette Drumm

Lev Edwards

Dick Wrigley

Glyn (Louie) Lewis and Rita

Tiggy and Marilyn Bates

Pete and Kathy Strydom