Beacons Project 2021 - Farewell Poem by Elin Williams

Elin Williams took part in the Beacons Project at Hay Festival Winter Weekend 2021. The Beacons Project aims to encourage creativity and forge a sense of creative identity amongst young people in Wales. It offers a unique opportunity for twenty Welsh students aged 16-18 to meet and work with exceptional writers, broadcasters and journalists in a highly creative and stimulating environment during Hay Festival.

Farewell Poem

So here we are,

Dear friends

Colleagues

Writers and artist alike

A bond so deep,

we wade up to our knees

Thanks to some small festival site

The fellow dreamers I fell in love with

The people I have claimed as my own

My flock

My family

My people

And all too soon,

Wrenched from the warmth of your light

Forced to the ends of the earth

Or Wales

Back to our lonely bookshelves

And though my tears are falling

And though my pain is raw

We must keep on writing

Keep the memory of what’s in store

I shall always remember the wonders

The simple things, pisslords and all

And to you, my friends, my beacons,

Keep writing

And keep shining tall.