Perhaps old adages need a little bit of a ‘tweak’

CYOU’RE never too old to learn something new.

That’s what ‘they’ say. Whoever ‘they’ are.

Despite investigating the matter for years, across several continents where I interviewed some of the world’s greatest philosophers (and if you believe that I have a couple of bridges for sale that span the River Severn which can be yours for the bargain price of £100,000 each. Cash only!) I was unable to discover who ‘they’ are.

‘They’ are those mysterious creators of wise sayings, commonly known as ‘old adages’, which people have used for centuries.

Inevitably, as the generations pass on, many adages fall out of use, but I still occasionally hear them used, as I did last week when I walked past (at a social distance) two people in the street having a conversation and one was saying “Yes . . . he’s as dim as a Toc H lamp!”.

I’ve not heard that one for decades and never understood what it meant.

But as information is now available at the touch of a button, I found out that Toc H is a Christian movement that started out as a rest and recreation centre for British soldiers in Belgium in 1915.

The person who created Toc H was the Reverend Phillip Thomas Byard ‘Tubby’ Clayton – who must have taken ages to sign cheques.

‘Toc’ stands for the letter ‘T’ in the Army signals spelling alphabet and the organisation’s symbol is an ‘Aladdin’ oil lamp with a pale yellow flame.

After years of wondering, I found out what ‘ Dim as a Toc H lamp’ meant in a matter of minutes, proving you’re never too old to learn something new . . . or something created in 1915 in this particular case.

Perhaps old adages would have a better chance of surviving if they were ‘tweaked’ a little to appeal to the modern generation.

“There’s no fool like an old fool” could be replaced by “There’s no fool like an American President with a combover!”

While “Dim as a Toc H lamp” could be updated to “Dim as a Love Island contestant”.

Let’s see what ‘they’ have to say about that!

You can follow Phil Evans on Twitter @philevanswales or visit www.philevans.co.uk

MY good friend and award-winning photographer Rob Jones, from Porthcawl, has taught me many valuable lessons over the years and is a firm believer that magic moments and memories must be captured and recorded on a regular basis.

At long last I’m now beginning to understand the importance of capturing memories of special occasions, family, friends and events that have helped shape us and turn us into the people we are today.

Looking back has so many benefits and often helps us relive feelings of joy and reflect on the good times and sometimes of the people that we now so dearly miss.

Like everything else, though, there is always a down side.

Like the hair cut, clothes and, in my case, a slimmer version.

With dementia becoming more of a concern to many families, taking a trip down memory lane while looking through old photos can be such a blessing and often provide that much-needed relief to the pain and suffering attached to this debilitating condition.

We may not yet have a cure for dementia but our minds can still benefit and be stimulated by pictures of days gone by.