Dahl's Centenary at RHS Cardiff

A wicker BFG at RHS Cardiff

2016 is an extraordinary year for literary anniversaries. It's not all about Shakespeare and Cervantes. Cardiff is celebrating the centenary of the birth of the famous author Roald Dahl. Roald Dahl's children's characters featured prominently at the Royal Horticultural Society's Cardiff Flower Show. We were barely inside the entrance before we saw the towering figure of Dahl's BFG made out of wicker (left).

Roald Dahl was born in the North of Cardiff, the capital of Wales. His parents were Norwegian and he was baptised in the Norwegian Church in Cardiff Bay.

Dahl-inspired Pure Imagination Garden

One of the show gardens was called Pure Imagination. It was inspired by Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It was a surreal representation complete with chocolate pond. It captured something of the storyteller's wonderful imagination. 

The best Roald Dahl-themed show contributions came from local children. Local nursery schools, primary schools, Beavers, Brownies and various other children's groups transformed wheelbarrows to represent their favourite stories. Show visitors were given counters to vote for their favourite wheelbarrow. It was extremely difficult to choose.

My elder son chose the Enormous Crocodile (left). It brought back fond memories of bedtime stories when he was younger. He now towers over me - not as tall as the BFG, but pretty tall nonetheless. 

We remembered how he used to love the ending when the enormous crocodile gets sent spinning off into space. 

Roald Dahl wrote great stories that are still capturing children's imaginations. 

My younger son always loved listening to Roald Dahl's stories. He liked James and the Giant Peach, Fantastic Mr Fox and George's Marvellous Medicine. He loved that the wicked grandmother got her comeuppance in the latter.



Not every child finds reading and writing easy. Reluctant readers and children with early learning difficulties often appreciate Roald Dahl's stories. If they grow to love the stories through other means like artwork and gardening, it is much easier to motivate them to read the books afterwards. Fresh air and improving hand strength for writing are added bonuses.

James and the Giant Peach Wheelbarrow

Not only was Roald Dahl an inspirational storyteller, his own story is inspiring for such children.  It now seems incredible to think that Roald Dahl's teachers did not think much of his writing skills. Their comments were cruel. Yet, he went on to become one of our best-known and best-loved authors.

I thought it was a great idea for the RHS to host such a competition. It combined literacy skills and gardening. The children had obviously put a lot of thought, work and love into their wheelbarrows. Capture them young. I'm sure that early interests in reading, the environment and gardening never go away.  They certainly didn't in my case. 

Moorlands Primary School's entry complete with a Norwegian flag and Dahl's writing hut

After a great start to the RHS Show season, I am now looking forward to the Chelsea and Hampton Court Flower Shows. Tickets already booked.

RHS On Tour Bus ready for the next show

Karen Andrews runs
Anglicity Ltd. She is

an English copywriter 

and digital marketer

with Welsh roots.

She loves gardening

and visiting gardens.

For further information see
Anglicity's website

The Education of Girls

Malala won the Nobel Peace Prize at an amazing 17. There are many unsung heroines in the world. It seems to be a very appropriate time between International Women's Day and Mother's Day to recognise such heroines. Many mothers appreciate the value of education for their daughters because it was absent from their own lives. This blog is a thank you to a very special mother.

Unsung heroine

My mother is an unsung heroine. At 15, she left school barely able to read. An endless succession of childhood illnesses and hospital stays meant that she was hardly in school to learn. She lost her first job because she couldn't spell.  At secretarial college, a kindly lady helped her to read, spell and do shorthand. It seems ironic that in her later working life, many better-educated colleagues relied on her excellent spelling and grammar. The ability must always have been there. Confidence knocked in early life can remain elusive.

Three girls

Carole Andrews (my mother) married at 17. She had three daughters while still in her twenties. She worked hard to spare us her bad school experiences. She ensured that I could read fluently at 4, before even starting school.

Achievement

My mother continued to support my education as best she could even after divorce. She recognises that education opens doors. As a single parent on a secretary's salary, she ensured that all three of her daughters benefited from a higher education. We followed the career path of our choice. So it was that I, the great-granddaughter of a Welsh coal miner, was the first member of our family ever to go to university. At one stage my mother had 3 jobs to make this possible. What she couldn't achieve for herself, she helped us to achieve. Three daughters: two scientists and one linguist. Quite an achievement.

Do your best

No "thank you" could ever be enough for some of the sacrifices she had to make. My level of success often does not appear enough by comparison. Probably becoming Britain's Prime Minister, achieving a double doctorate or winning the Nobel Peace Prize wouldn't have come near either. But then, she never expected any of that. She only ever asked that we tried our best within our abilities.

Literacy to pay forward

I cannot hope to repay her. Neither of us is particularly demonstrative. The words always seem to come out backwards, sideways or not at all.  But I can write. I use those very literacy skills that she helped me to develop. I can write using the education that she made possible to pay it forward.

My family's story illustrates what can be achieved by educating girls in just a generation.

Thank you, Mum, today and always.

As a mother of two sons, I will save my views on the education of boys for a future blog. Please check back soon.