Live On, Learn On.

Last night, I was reading 'Land of my Fathers', the English translation of Gwynfor Evans's 'Aros Mae' for the second time. It hadn't previously struck me that my maternal grandmother's family farm was named after Brychan Brycheiniog's mother, Marchell. It was in Llanstephan, in the old Radnorshire between Builth, Brecon & Hay , and the nearest villages were Boughrood, Llandeilo Graban & Llyswen. Coincidentally she left at the end of the 19th c. to move to Merthyr, the town that took it's name from Marchell's grand daughter Tydfil, and where they both died. I never made the connection, and as far as I know, neither did she. Also last night as I was reading Edgar Allan Poe's 'MS. Found in a Bottle' I came across the name Batavia, having vaguely heard of it but knowing nothing about it; I let it pass and eventually fell asleep. The following morning I switched on the television to some obscure channel and incredibly they were showing an old black & white programme featuring Batavia, so I took hold of a Larousse encyclopaedia and learned that it was the former name of Djakarta, and in case you are wondering, I have one book in the bedroom and another in a private place.