A Story

                                                                           -Dylan Thomas

This is a story told by a young boy. He has presented the adults’ world from his own point of view. The story presents a description of an outing (picnic) to Porthcawl.

               

The boy was living with his uncle, Mr. Thomas, and aunt, Sarah. His uncle was a very big man, but the house was small. The uncle dropped a lot of food on his clothes when he ate. He used to speak loudly and had red hair. He had a small shop in the house. The boy’s aunt was small and quiet. The boy compares her to a mouse. As she walked around the house quietly, he also compares her to a cat. The aunt spent a lot of time cleaning the small house. Whenever she was angry with her husband, she would like to hit him on his head with a china dog. But she couldn’t do it unless the boy’s uncle lifted her up.

               

One evening, the boy was sitting in his uncle’s shop when some of his friends came in. They talked about their annual outing (trip). Mr. Benjamin Franklyn said that he had collected enough money for bus fair and 20 cases of beer. He was angry at Will Sentry because he was continuously following him. Then they started playing cards. The boy felt that the shop would burst any time. The boy slept on his uncle’s waistcoat.

               

On Sunday evening, while the boy and his uncle were eating sardines, Mr. Franklyn and Will Sentry came in. Mr. Franklyn had brought a list of the people who wanted to go on the outing. Everybody had fully paid. The uncle saw the list and approved the names.

               

The aunt had overheard their plan. So, she became angry. She threatened her husband that she would go to her mother’s house. She told her husband to choose between the outing and herself. The uncle chose the outing.

               

For the rest of the week, the boy’s aunt was quiet. On the Saturday morning, the morning of the outing, the uncle found a note on the kitchen table. The aunt had left. Every year this happened, but the uncle had to take the boy with him this time.

               

It was a beautiful August morning. The men had hired a bus for their outing. They would stop at every public house and drink alcohol. The boy had to wait outside. Even when the bar was closed, they would drink behind the locked doors. There was a river on the way. When they saw it, they got off the bus and jumped into the cold water.

               

It was dusk. All the thirty people of the group were wet and drunk. They did not take care of anything that was going around them. They stopped at another public house for drinking.

               

Without reaching Porthcawl, which was their destination, they started their journey back home. On the way they stopped at a place. They took out all the remaining cases of beer and sat down in a circle in the field. They started drinking and singing while old O. Jones cooked sausages and mashed potatoes with a kerosene stove. The moon was shining above their heads. The boy felt sleepy. He slept against his uncle’s waistcoat.
Listen A Story by Dylan Thomas.
Part I and Part II.