64: Trystan Hughes

Nostalgia Interviews with Chris Deacy

My guest this week is Revd. Dr. Trystan Hughes, an Anglican vicar in the Church in Wales and a tutor in Applied Theology. We talk about growing up in North Wales and doing all of his schooling through the medium of Welsh, and we discuss the advantages of having a multi-lingual education, as well as the evolution of school education and the eleven-plus.

Trystan talks about how he was obsessed with football stickers as a child (and the search for the elusive missing sticker), how he would listen to classical music and then about how he made the evolution to pop music, and why a schoolfriend was teased for being a Spandau Ballet fan. We talk about how this is all bound up in identity, and we learn why Trystan was obsessed with The Jam and music that carried a message, and how his children know all the words of Gilbert O’Sullivan’s ‘Nothing Rhymed’.

We find out how it was love that resulted in Trystan remaining in North Wales when he went to university, and we learn about how he came to do a PhD on the Roman Catholic Church in Wales. He talks about the journey he was on which resulted in him leaving Higher Education and why his calling took him to ordination and he talks about his drive to connect with people through his subsequent faith-based publications. Trystan reveals how from a young age he has given thought to what his legacy is and he talks about the importance of awareness.

We discuss the nature of being an academic and what happens when one element, e.g. research, is put on a pedestal above teaching, and the importance of connecting with people and why textbooks are so important.

We learn that Trystan’s memories are predominantly positive and he explains why he doesn’t tend to revisit the more painful ones, and we discuss why it is important to use nostalgia to inspire the present. We discuss the question of what makes something great, why the education policy of any country should be the top priority, and the importance of teaching about climate change. We also then discuss whether the journey is as important as the destination.

In the final part of the interview we talk about extra-curricular interests and Trystan draws on his own experience of living and dealing with pain. We find out what Trystan’s younger self wanted to be and how our dreams develop quickly, and we talk about the importance of knowing our limitations. We discuss the importance of maintaining friendships and the value of Facebook in this regard, and Trystan finishes the interview by talking about why he is such a hopeful person.

Please note: Opinions expressed are solely those of Chris Deacy and Trystan Hughes and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the University of Kent.