FRIDAY 18TH SEPTEMBER

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Some Taoist sayings -

Intelligent people know others,
Enlightened people know themselves.

You can conquer others with power,
But it takes true strength to conquer yourself.

When people see beauty, they think - that’s beautiful!
Thinking of something as being beautiful makes you think other things are ugly.
Calling something “good” forces you to call some other things “bad.”

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

This is Flower Painting No4 by Joy Shaylor


-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

THE OLD WORKMAN

“Why are you so bent down before your time,
Old mason? Many have not left their prime
So far behind at your age, and can still
Stand full upright at will.”

He pointed to the mansion-front hard by,
And to the stones of the quoin against the sky;
“Those upper blocks,” he said, “that there you see,
It was that ruined me.”

There stood in the air up to the parapet
Crowning the corner height, the stones as set
By him - ashlar whereon the gales might drum
For centuries to come.

“I carried them up,” he said, “by a ladder there;
The last was as big a load as I could bear;
But on I heaved; and something in my back
Moved, as ‘twere with a crack.

“So I got crookt. I never lost that sprain;
And those who live there, walled from wind and rain
By freestone that I lifted, do not know
That my life’s ache came so.

“They don’t know me, or even know my name,
But good I think it, somehow, all the same
To have kept ‘em safe from harm, and right and tight,
Though it has broke me quite.

“Yes; that I fixed it firm up there I am proud,
Facing the hail and snow and sun and cloud,
And to stand storms for ages, beating round
When I lie underground.” (Thomas Hardy 1840-1928)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-


"The Grand Canal, Venice" by Canaletto (1697-1768)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

I was very pleased with the Haiku Homestead blog which I re-started last week.

The theme of today’s posting is Autumn and I give some interesting answers to the question “What exactly is a haiku?”

http://haikuhomestead.blogspot.com

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Finally, a recording of the Londonderry Air played by Nigel Kennedy.



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

FRIDAY 11TH SEPTEMBER

Look in the perfume of flowers and of nature for peace of mind and joy of life. (Wang Wei 701-circa 761 AD, Chinese painter, poet and musician)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

This is the 3rd of Joy Shaylor’s flower paintings



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

SOLITUDE

Two poems by Wang Wei

My Retreat at Mount ZhongNan

In middle life I became immersed
In the philosophy of Tao.
Later I went to live
At the foot of South Mountain.
When I am happy I walk alone in the hills.

I know within my heart
What is good and which is beautiful.
When I arrive at the source of the stream
I sit down to rest and to watch the mists rising.
Sometimes I need a time-worn woodcutter,
Talking and laughing together,
We forget it is time to go home!


In a Retreat among Bamboos

Leaning alone in the close bamboos,
I am playing my lute and humming a song
Too softly for anyone to hear,
Except my comrade, the bright moon.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

This is by the Russian painter Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi (1842-1910)



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

A ZEN STORY

Twenty monks and one young nun were practising meditation under a famous Zen Master.

The nun was very beautiful and before long many of the monks had secretly fallen in love with her. Only one of them however showed his feelings, by slipping a love letter to her when nobody was looking.

The next day they were all assembled to hear a lecture from the Master. When it had finished, the nun stood up and, in front of everyone, said to the one who had written to her, “If you really love me, come and embrace me now.”

And the moral of course is - If you love, love openly.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that's best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes:
Thus mellow'd to that tender light
Which heaven to gaudy day denies.

One shade the more, one ray the less,
Had half impair'd the nameless grace
Which waves in every raven tress,
Or softly lightens o'er her face;
Where thoughts serenely sweet express
How pure, how dear their dwelling place.

And on that cheek, and o'er that brow,
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,
The smiles that win, the tints that glow,
But tell of days in goodness spent,
A mind at peace with all below,
A heart whose love is innocent! (Lord Byron 1788-1824)

The poet was inspired to write this by the beauty of his cousin Mrs Wilmot.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Many years ago this Chopin piano piece became known as "So Deep is the Night". It's the Etude Op10 No3 in E major “Tristesse” by Chopin, played by the Polish-born American Arthur Rubinstein.



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

After a break of three months, my HAIKU HOMESTEAD blog is in operation again. I’ve made some changes to the format and to the style, and you can see it at -

http://haikuhomestead.blogspot.com

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

FRIDAY 4TH SEPTEMBER

Rainbows are just to look at, not to understand. (Anon)



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Inside each raindrop swims the sun.
Inside each flower breathes the moon.
Inside me dwell ten million stars,
One for each of my ancestors -
The elk, the raven, the mouse, the man,
The flower, the coyote, the lion, the fish.
Ten million different stars am I,
But only one spirit connecting all. (Nancy Wood)

What is life?
It is the flash of a firefly in the night.
It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime.
It is the little shadow which runs across the grass
And loses itself in the sunset. (Crowfoot)


Crowfoot (1830-1890) Chief of the Blackfoot people, Canada

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-


“Iona” by the Scottish painter Francis Cadell (1883-1937)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey,
Where wealth accumulates and men decay;
Princes and lords may flourish or may fade;
A breath can make them, as a breath has made;
But a bold peasantry, their country’s pride,
When once destroyed, can never be supplied.
(Oliver Goldsmith 1730-1774, an extract from The Deserted Village)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The singer here is Chloe Agnew and the melody comes from The Four Seasons by Vivaldi. The song is “Signore guidami” and the English translation is shown below.


Lord, guide me and tell me what to do,
I’ve seen the love of my life and he has seen me.
I want to tell him that I love him and I hope he’ll say the same.
Life goes by fast, my heart beats strong,
Lord, guide me and grant me peace.
I ask you what to say, how to say it.
Show me how to say I love him,
Show me how to say he loves me,
I’m praying that he’ll say that he loves me.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

FRIDAY 28TH AUGUST

A small child looked at a star and began to weep.
And the star said "Child, why do you weep?"
The child said "You are so far away. I will never be able to touch you."
And the star answered "Child, if I were not already in your heart, you would not be able to see me now." (John Magliola)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

This is the second in a series of six paintings by Joy Shaylor



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Morning, Noon and Night -

early morning dew -
teardrops from the willow
sparkle on the grass

cool summer breezes -
shadows of the windmill blades
scything through the grass

sparkling through the trees
fingers of fading sunlight
dance on the river

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-


"The Pioneer" by the Australian painter Frederick McCubbin (1855-1917)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

BILLY AND ME by James Hogg (1770-1835)

Where the pools are bright and deep,
Where the grey trout lies asleep,
Up the river and over the lea,
That's the way for Billy and me.

Where the blackbird sings the latest,
Where the hawthorn blooms the sweetest,
Where the nestlings chirp and flee,
That's the way for Billy and me.

Where the mowers mow the cleanest,
Where the hay lies thick and greenest,
There to track the homeward bee,
That's the way for Billy and me.

Where the hazel bank is steepest,
Where the shadow falls the deepest,
Where the clustering nuts fall free,
That's the way for Billy and me.

Why the boys should drive away
Little sweet maidens from the play,
Or love to banter and fight so well,
That's the thing I never could tell.

But this I know, I love to play
Through the meadow, among the hay;
Up the water and over the lea,
That's the way for Billy and me.

[James Hogg, poet and author, became known as “The Ettrick Shepherd.” He was born in 1770 on a small farm near Ettrick in Scotland and died in 1835]

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The music here is the popular song The Rose, written and composed by Amanda McBroom, and performed by Gheorghe Zamfir on panpipes.



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

I was delighted to learn that John's Quiet Corner had been recommended to stumbleupon.com by a viewer in Philadelphia who wrote "This old man blogger has some really amazing images and poetry selected - and he updates frequently."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

FRIDAY 21ST AUGUST

This is the miracle that happens every time to those who really love - the more they give, the more they possess. (Rainer Maria Rilke 1875-1926)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-


"Bluebells" by Lawrence Alma-Tadema (1836-1912)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

I sleep with thee, and wake with thee,
And yet thou art not there;
I fill my arms with thoughts of thee,
And press the common air.

Thy eyes are gazing upon mine
When thou art out of sight;
My lips are always touching thine
At morning, noon, and night.

I think and speak of other things
To keep my mind at rest,
But still to thee my memory clings
Like love in woman's breast.

I hide it from the world's wide eye
And think and speak contrary,
But soft the wind comes from the sky
And whispers tales of Mary.

The night-wind whispers in my ear,
The moon shines on my face;
The burden still of chilling fear
I find in every place.

The breeze is whispering in the bush,
And the leaves fall from the tree,
All sighing on, and will not hush,
Some pleasant tales of thee.
(John Clare 1793-1864)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

This is the first of 6 flower paintings by Joy Shaylor



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

This is a beautiful piece of music by Gabriel Faure (1845-1924) - Pavane.



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

FRIDAY 14TH AUGUST

The clouds above us join and separate,
The breeze in the courtyard leaves and returns;
Life is like that, so why not relax?
Who can stop us from celebrating? (Lu You 1125-1210)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-


“Wang Xizhi” by the Chinese painter Qian Xuan (1235-1305)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Three more of my haiku -

sketching the roses -
time and time again falling
petals change my view

a speck of yellow
among the blue wild flowers -
one small buttercup

sunny afternoon -
the fish and their shadows make
the pond seem crowded

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The Girl with the Flaxen Hair by Debussy played by Jascha Heifetz and Emanual Bay



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Music, when soft voices die,
Vibrates in the memory;
Odours, when sweet violets sicken,
Live within the sense they quicken.

Rose leaves, when the rose is dead,
Are heaped for the beloved’s bed;
And so thy thoughts, when thou are gone,
Love itself shall slumber on.
(Percy Bysshe Shelley 1792-1822)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Finally, someone has put together this slide show of 44 paintings by a number of 19th century artistes. The whole thing lasts 6 minutes and 44 seconds, but it's well worth watching.



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

FRIDAY 7TH AUGUST

There are only two ways to live your life.
One is as though nothing is a miracle.
The other is as if everything is. (Albert Einstein)



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

All the breath and bloom of the year in the bag of one bee;
All the wonder and wealth of the mine in the heart of one gem;
In the core of one pearl all the shade and the shine of the sea;
Breath and bloom, shade and shine -
Wonder, wealth and - how far above them -
Truth, that’s brighter than gem,
Trust, that’s purer than pearl -
Brightest truth, purest trust in the universe
All were for me in the kiss of one girl. (Robert Browning 1812-1889)

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-


"Madame Moitessier" by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1780-1867)
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Something to think about -

ONCE UPON A TIME a traveller was journeying across the desert when he met two strange men. As they were all going roughly in the same direction, they chatted as they walked.

The men told the traveller that their names were Fear and Plague and they were going to a big city where they intended to kill 20,000 of the inhabitants.

Shocked, the man asked Plague if he would do all the work.

Plague shook his head, “No, I’ll kill only a few hundred. My friend Fear will do the rest.”

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

This piece of music is a particular favourite of mine - Romance from the Gadfly Suite by Shostakovich.



-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Finally, a haiku -

stillness of twilight
the aspen leaves quivering
in eerie silence

[In the Scottish Highlands the aspen tree, also known as the trembling poplar, is said to have magical powers]

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-