Do The Little Things In Life – How St David Can Help Your Mental Health
March 1st each year is marked as St David’s Day in Wales, the date St David is considered to have died. For those of you who don’t come from Wales, he was a Welsh bishop during the 6th Century and is the patron saint of Wales (although he hasn’t managed to keep up with St Patrick when it comes to celebrations!)
Now I don’t claim to be a fountain of all knowledge about the life and times of Saint David. At my primary school just outside Cardiff, I do remember that we would all pin leeks or daffodils on our tops to celebrate. There’s nothing quite like the memory of siting in the assembly hall with the strong waft of leeks and while watching some of the boys at the back quietly munching on their raw leeks whilst trying not to get spotted by the teachers (I stuck to a more sober felt type daffodil on my top).
According to the BBC (St David: Ten things about the Patron Saint of Wales) he was a teetotal vegetarian, which kind of makes him alright by me.
And apparently his last words to his followers were ‘Be joyful, keep the faith, and do the little things that you have heard and seen me do.’ And also apparently (thanks BBC), the phrase ‘Gwnewch y pethau bychain’ (‘Do the little things’) is still well-known in Wales.
I can’t claim to have known that phrase as a common Welsh thing. Even though every rugby match I’ve ever watched seems to have a pundit going on about the team doing the little things (or basics) well. It certainly has never ranked up there with the one most prevalent in my family, ‘now, in a minute’ (which totally confused my wife when she first heard it! Do you mean now? Or do you mean in a minute?!!).
And many is the time that someone has been confused by another family saying we had. When we split up in Cardiff to go shopping, my family would arrange a time to meet ‘inside, outside.’ Which if it isn’t immediately obvious would mean meeting inside the shopping centre and outside M&S. Obviously.
But anyway, that little phrase of Saint David can be a pretty handy reminder when it comes to your mental health.
