Criccieth – Path of Peace

Description

Criccieth – Path of Peace.
The path, which leads from the gates to the entrance of the Memorial Hall, was created by the students of Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor as a contribution to their community, as a permanent reminder of the centenary of the end of the First World War. In order to consider a suitable design the student visited the garden in front of the hall to hear the history of the building. Then one put his hand on the stone that celebrates the laying of the foundations of the hall back in 1922, and took a step back, to read the inscription, bridging a century of remembrance. Some sat on the memorial benches, while others sketched the beautiful building. Later we tried to use clay to reflect on the memorable experience of hearing, learning, experiencing and seeing. The medium gave them the opportunity to sense and convey the feeling and emotion attached to the memorial, as contemporary representatives of generations of remembrance. The finished clay tiles were placed on one side of the path, to encourage
the person who walks on it to take steps forward, and black and white clay was inserted in letters to carry a suitable message that comforts and calms the mind. When researching further online, verses were found by the poet Cemaes, in a newspaper from 1901 in the collection of the National Library of Wales that asked; "What is Peace?" offering a number of answers so the whole was based on that poem. When walking up the path towards the entrance of the Memorial Hall, the vocabulary moves with the walk, like a fair breeze, and the feathers of the dove of peace once again fly gracefully framing the walk of peace.

A magnificent memorial bench was placed with a design of a silhouette of soldiers, and the red poppy on it in the gardens of the Memorial Hall overlooking the peace path. The bench was donated by Cricieth in Bloom, The Memorial Hall, and Cricieth Town Council, to remember the centenary; "A place for the soul to rest".

WHAT IS PEACE

What is a "Peace"? a gentle angel
kindling grievance and pain
it turns the verse of worry
Into sweet soothing melodies:
Peace is the smiling sun
With no sign of black clouds
It makesthe flowers grow
To decorate its belovedpath.

What is "Peace"? The sheath of the sword
And silence of weapons,
It is the eve for brave strong soldiers
Moaning through it turns to melodies.

Peace is a calm ocean
No roaming storm in sight.
No rock to turn its beauty
Into a frightful aqueous grave.

Peace is the foundation of society
A solid column of union.
It brings hateful prayers
Amicably towards God.

What is peace? A triumphant sound?
Raised from a nourished soul
A happy anthem of praise
Absent of mournful notes.

Translation by Ffion Gwyn of the original poem by D.R Owen Shop y Bont Cemaes.
Gwalia June 11 1901.
Photographs by Ffion Gwyn