2. It
was
a
typical
Monday
morning.
Eating
the
leftovers
from
the
week.
The
day
old
mutton,
and
oil
covered
lamb
soup.
I
can
still
taste
the
delicious
cow
heart
we
ate
for
dinner
last
night.
As
I
reached
for
my
safety
lamp,
my
hip
bumped
the
dressing
table.
Hiding
beneath
the
wooden
desk
and
buried
in
a
sheet
of
dust,
I
saw
something
else.
It
was
nothing
but
crumpled
pieces
of
paper
with
torn
edges,
but
it
was
what
inside,
that
was
shocking.
My
great
grandfather
was
a
coal
miner,
but
that
was
never
his
dream,
nor
his
passion.
The
stories
I’ve
heard
about
him
is
all
about
his
artistic
skills,
though
I’ve
never
seen
any
of
his
pieces,
till
now.
He
must
have
drawn
it
in
his
free
time,
the
finely
sketched
details
of
a
steam
engine.
On
the
sides
he
wrote
the
facts
he
new
about
it.
Like
how
it
worked,
and
who
created
it.
I
was
impressed
by
his
knowledge,
but
not
surprised.
After
all,
the
steam
engine
was
a
great
innovation.
As
I
left
for
the
colleries,
I
mumbled
to
myself
the
information
I
remembered.
The
steam
engine
was
improved
by
a
man
named
James
Watt
in
July
5,
1781.
He
created
the
locomotive
and
made
a
great
impact
on
the
coal
mining
industry,
by
increasing
the
efficiency
of
work
and
marking
the
beginning
of
big
technological
machines.
My
great
grandpa’s
finely
sketched
steam
engine.
3. Reading
for
endless
hours…
The
steam
engine
helped
coal
miner’s
get
through
rough
times.
Before
it
was
invented,
the
gigantic
carts
of
coal
would
be
dragged
by
animals,
and
people!
But
when
it
rained,
the
tracks
would
get
muddy
and
it’d
make
it
impossible
for
the
barrows
to
get
through.
Now
that
we
have
the
steam
engine,
coal
can
be
easily
transported
from
place
to
place,
running
up
and
down
hills
on
their
railroad
tracks.
14
hours
usually
felt
like
a
lifetime,
but
today
I
felt
like
I
was
in
a
trance.
I
couldn’t
wait
till
I
got
back
to
read
more
about
the
great
steam
engine.
I
could
feel
my
sweat
running
down
on
my
coal
dust
covered
face.
It
was
early
July
and
the
weather
outside
was
like
a
heat
oven.
But
that
was
nothing
compared
to
the
temperature
underground
in
the
coal
mines,
reminding
me
of
our
usual
Wednesday
cleanups
in
tin
baths
filled
with
boiling
water.
The
intense
heat
mixed
in
with
the
unsanitary
working
conditions
with
rats
gnawing
away
on
our
tin-‐wrapped
lunches,
probably
spreading
diseases
along
the
way,
was
definitely
hazardous
to
my
health,
at
least
that's
what
I
think.
As
time
slowly
crept
pass
I
finally
got
to
go
home
from
that
horrible
conditioned
child
labor
torture.
Scrambling
to
reach
the
paper,
there
I
sat,
reading
and
studying
for
endless
hours.
4. My
hand
is
shaking
ecstatically.
Yesterday
night
I
asked
my
grandpa
what
he
was
drawing.
I
discovered
it
was
the
Blanaevon
ironwork.
From
the
sketches
it
looked
like
a
row
of
brick-‐made
houses,
with
huge
chimney’s
pumping
out
smoke.
There
were
railroad
tracks
on
the
ground.
It
seemed
to
work
as
a
path,
leading
stone
carts
filled
with
coal
to
different
places.
Surrounding
the
tracks
lay
heaps
of
ore,
coal,
and
limestone.
He
explained
to
me
what
it
was
and
how
it
worked.
The
Blanaevon
ironwork
factory
contained
2
monster-‐sized
furnaces.
There
were
around
thousands
of
men,
woman,
and
children,
including
my
grandpa
working
for
the
same
object.
Iron.
Major
contributions
that
allowed
iron
to
change
the
whole
empire
were
limestone,
coal,
and
of
course,
ironstone.
He
told
me
about
the
great
water-‐balancing
tower,
which
had
always
been
there
since
I
was
born.
But
listening
through
my
grandpa's
perspective
when
it
was
just
invented
in
1839
was
fascinating.
I
went
to
the
Blanaevon
Ironworks
after
I
listened
to
the
amazing
memories
my
grandpa
had
there.
5. The
monster
sized
chimneys
and
furnaces
pumping
out
smoke.
The
water-‐balancing
tower
is
simple,
yet
useful.
He
drew
two
balanced
boxes,
and
some
iron
water
tanks.
When
one
cage
rose,
the
other
one
sank.
My
grandpa
talked
about
how
on
his
lucky
days,
he’d
see
the
molten
iron,
as
it
came
oozing
out
brimming
with
a
shining
gold
color.
The
visionary
planted
in
my
mind
baffled
me.
I
almost
wished
I
were
an
ironworker,
though
the
conditions
in
the
ironworks
were
not
any
better
than
the
coalmines.
The
dangers
of
an
ironworker
could
end
up
being
very
severe,
could
even
be
fatal.
Since
the
workers
would
be
needed
to
work
at
various
heights,
falling
was
a
huge
problem.
Though,
being
an
ironwork
owner
was
completely
different,
making
tons
of
money.
My
grandpa
said
how
they’d
spend
it
on
huge
mansions,
some
in
London!
I
wish
I
were
an
ironwork
owner,
making
so
much
money,
being
able
to
support
my
starving
and
sick
family…
6. Hallelujah!
I
cannot
express
how
incredible
I
feel
right
now…Lord
Shaftesbury
convinced
the
Parliament
to
examine
our
coal
mine
conditions.
Lord
Ashley
came
two
years
ago
to
Rhondda,
and
surveyed
our
mining
conditions.
Right
away
it
was
obvious
that
they
were
terrible
and
some
changes
needed
to
happen.
She
saw
that
children
at
small
ages
like
five
and
six
worked
as
trappers,
which
was
shutting
and
opening
the
doors
down
in
the
mines.
She
also
noticed
how
woman
were
basically
naked,
working
underground
with
men.
The
number
of
deaths
Lord
Ashley
discovered
each
year
in
the
coalmines
were
4,000.
Due
to
the
methane
gas
explosions,
unpredictable
falls
of
the
rocks,
and
diseases,
that
coal
miners
had
to
face
each
and
everyday
was
unacceptable.
Today,
two
years
after
the
inspection,
the
changes
were
finally
made.
The
rules
were
heart-‐warming,
and
I
remember
each
word
coming
out
of
her
mouth:
No
woman
was
allowed
to
work
underground.
Boys
had
to
be
at
least
10
years
old,
to
work
underground.
But
parish
apprentices
between
the
ages
of
10-‐18
were
not
affected,
and
were
allowed
to
keep
working
in
the
coalmines.
Small
children
working
underground
in
the
hazardous
conditions
7. Poor
helpless
children
working
as
trappers
Even
though
nothing
had
changed
for
me,
and
I
still
had
to
go
down
underground
in
the
coalmines
everyday,
my
family
was
safe.
My
wife
could
finally
escape
the
hazardous
circumstances
underground.
And
most
importantly,
my
precious
boy,
my
5-‐
year-‐old
son
named
Rhys
would
not
have
to
work
as
a
slave,
as
a
trapper
anymore.
But
work
outside,
with
a
lot
smaller
amounts
of
danger
to
harm
his
innocent
little
body…or
at
least
till
he
was
10.
Even
though
I
am
so
thankful
for
these
magnificent
changes,
I
still
deeply
wish
that
they
would
do
something
about
the
number
of
hours
spent
at
the
coalmines.
Before,
we’d
have
to
work
for
around
11-‐12
hours,
but
some
spent
26
hours
underground,
finishing
their
jobs.
It
was,
and
still
is
horrible.
But
at
least
with
these
rules,
life
would
be
better,
and
to
those
families
who
have
children
that
will
be
saved
by
the
Mines
Act
made
today,
May
15,
1842,
then
that
is
wonderful.
But
to
those
families,
including
my
own,
who
has
lost
one
or
many
children
to
the
horrible
conditions
in
the
coalmines,
all
will
be
better.
Rest
in
peace
my
darling
girl,
passed
away
at
age
7
from
typhus.
I,
Gareth
Evans
thank
you
personally.
God
bless
Lord
Shaftesbury
and
Lord
Ashley
for
changing
our
lives.
8. I
can
finally
afford
a
good
chunk
of
liver
again.
The
Pendyrus
opened
a
week
ago,
and
we
are
finally
getting
some
progress
done.
I’m
earning
the
Tylor
tokens
again,
allowing
me
to
barely
scrape
together
the
everyday
needs.
There
was
a
horrible
coal
shortage
in
the
past
few
months.
Leaving
us,
the
coal
miners,
to
have
a
huge
drop
in
income.
Things
were
appalling.
No
coal
meant
no
money,
and
no
money
meant
I
couldn’t
support
my
family.
With
my
sick
papa
Gareth
Evans
at
home,
I
didn’t
know
how
I
was
going
to
find
enough
food
for
all
of
us.
But
thankfully,
the
new
Pendyrus
opened.
And
it
was
like
a
gate
finally
unlocked
to
heaven.
We
mined
the
coal
so
fast
it
seemed
like
the
carts
weren’t
going
fast
enough
to
keep
up
with
our
speed.
I
speak
for
everyone
when
I
say
we
all
forgot
about
the
mucky
conditions
in
the
new
mine,
we
were
too
happy
about
the
amount
of
coal
that
was
hidden
underground
in
the
Pendyrus.
Earning
our
Tylor
Tokens!
9. Working
like
crazy
these
past
few
days!
Though
a
really
inconvenient
situation
that
happened
after
the
Pendyrus
was
opened
was
that
so
many
people
grabbed
that
opportunity
and
chose
to
work
there.
So
the
mines
were
jam
packed
with
people,
even
more
crowded
than
it
were
before.
Before
I
could
barely
stand,
we’d
all
have
to
use
the
bathroom
and
eat
at
the
same
place
we
were
working
at,
not
even
mentioning
the
dirty
rats
eagerly
trying
to
break
through
our
well-‐wrapped
lunches!
Now,
there
were
more
people
crammed
in
the
mines
to
make
matters
even
worse.
Ships
sailed
along
the
canal
in
all
different
directions,
transporting
sacks
of
coal
all
around
the
world.
This
huge
amount
of
coal
meant
a
huge
amount
of
money
for
Alfred
Tylor,
which
made
him
satisfied.
Even
though
our
hard
work
deserved
better
payments,
and
better
employment
benefits
like
I’ve
heard
David
Davies
(another
successful
coalmine
owner)
gives
to
his
coal
miners,
I
was
lucky
enough
to
have
the
Pendyrus
open
and
save
our
lives.
10. This
has
been
the
most
chaotic
week
in
my
life.
My
father
passed
away
last
night,
and
I
was
too
traumatized
to
write
anything.
He
died
from
lung
cancer,
which
is
very
frequent
due
to
the
fact
that
he
has
spent
all
his
life,
ever
since
he
was
able
to
walk
to
yesterday,
down
underground
in
the
mines.
Though
I
shouldn’t
be
feeling
so
down,
because
my
father
had
a
much
higher
than
the
average
life
span
of
coal
miners.
But
watching
a
loved-‐one
go
is
never
easy,
and
I
will
never
forget
the
last
few
words
he
said:
My
boy,
I
have
been
through
one
heck
of
a
journey,
you
continue
that
adventure.
You
are
no
ordinary
boy,
you
are
Rhys
Evans,
and
you’ll
make
me
prouder
than
a
father
could
be,
son.
And
I
will,
one
day
I
will
do
something
extraordinary
and
I
know
my
father
will
be
looking
down
on
me.
Today
was
one
of
those
days.
The
Pendyrus
coal
mine
shaft,
the
last
place
I
was.
11. Today
January
28,
1896
the
new
Pendyrus
coalmine
had
a
terrible
explosion.
57
coalminers
died,
it
would
have
been
58
if
I
didn’t
save
that
mans
life.
I
hate
to
boast
but
I
am
so
proud
of
myself
for
saving
that
old
man’s
life.
He
was
making
his
way
through
the
crowd
towards
the
shaft,
the
day
was
over
and
everyone
working
the
night
shift
was
crowded
around
the
shaft,
waiting
for
their
turn.
I
was
standing
in
the
shaft,
which
was
jam-‐packed
with
a
bunch
of
other
sweaty
and
tired
men.
I
reached
my
arms
out
to
forbid
anyone
else
into
the
over-‐
crammed
shaft.
But
then
suddenly
deathly
sounding
coughs
and
gaging
sounds
rippled
through
the
crowd
of
men
at
the
back
of
the
line.
Gas
explosion!
One
hollered,
choking
at
the
end
of
the
sentence.
The
men
started
to
fall
like
dominos,
holding
their
throats,
gasping
for
air.
My
eyes
darted
to
the
next
man
in
line.
He
seemed
old,
around
the
same
age
as
my
father
was.
Our
eyes
met
and
his
seemed
to
be
filled
with
confusion
and
it
reflected
the
terror
that
was
creeping
upon
him.
Suddenly
I
didn’t
care
about
the
limit
of
people
I
pulled
him
in
just
before
we
took
off.
12. The
rest
of
the
way
up,
the
only
sounds
that
filled
my
ears
were
yells,
and
my
own
heartbeat
thumping
as
fast
as
our
iron
pickaxes
hitting
coal.
My
eyes
squeezed
shut
as
I
tried
to
forget
the
coal
smeared
dirty
hands
that
grabbed
my
hand
when
I
pulled
the
old
man
in.
You
never
forget
the
look
on
the
face
when
you
were
their
last
hope.
I
tried
to
forget.
I
tried
to
block
those
images
with
the
heroic
feeling
I
had,
I
saved
someone’s
life.
One
family
out
there
will
be
ecstatic.
A
wife
will
still
have
her
husband.
His
kids
will
still
have
a
father.
Today
was
my
moment,
and
I
know
my
father
was
looking
down
on
me.
Prouder
than
ever.
RIP
to
those
57
coal
miners
who
didn’t
make
it
out
in
time.
RIP
father.
God
bless
all
those
families
who
have
lost
someone.
God
bless
the
fact
that
I
am
alive,
I
survived,
I
was
lucky,
and
I
did
something
important.
Something
extraordinary.
The
memories
were
taking
over
my
mind,
I
had
to
draw
them
out…
