FRIDAY 31ST JULY

Life is the flower for which love is the honey. (Victor Hugo)



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O my love is like a red, red rose,
That’s newly sprung in June;
O my love is like a melodie
That’s sweetly played in tune.

As fair thou art, my bonnie lass,
So deep in love am I,
And I will love thee still, my Dear,
Till a’ the seas gang dry.

Till a’ the seas gang dry, my Dear,
And the rocks melt wi’ the sun;
I will love thee still, my Dear,
While the sands o’ life shall run.

And fare thee weel, my only Love,
And fare thee weel a while!
And I will come again, my Love,
Tho’ it were ten thousand mile! (Robert Burns 1721-1784)

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“Wivenhoe Park Essex” by John Constable (1776-1837)

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Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm’d,
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm’d:
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest,
Nor shall death brag thou wandrest in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest,
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee. (William Shakespeare 1564-1616)

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FRIDAY 24TH JULY

For a good few years now I have been interested in haiku and have
enjoyed composing them. Many books have been written explaining what the haiku is, but the simplest definition would be a 17 syllable poem of three non-rhyming lines, the distribution of the syllables being 5/7/5. Using as few words as possible, it encapsulates a moment in time.

Those three haiku of mine are not connected - I wrote them at different times.

searching for the moon -
there it is, hiding behind
the old sycamore

midnight on the shore -
among the rocks a silver
moon in every pool

calm spring night, a stone
thrown in the pond shatters the
silence - and the moon



This poem "New Moon" written by Tu Fu (712-770) was translated by Kenneth Rexroth and is found in the anthology "One Hundred Poems from the Chinese"

The bright thin new moon appears,
Tipped askew in the heavens.
It no sooner shines over
The ruined fortress than the
Evening clouds overwhelm it.
The Milky Way shines unchanging
Over the freezing mountains
Of the border. White frost covers
The garden. The chrysanthemums
Clot and freeze in the night.

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Moonlight by J.M.W.Turner (1775-1851)

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Moonlight becomes you, it goes with your hair,
You certainly know the right thing to wear;
Moonlight becomes you, I'm thrilled at the sight
And I could get so romantic tonight.

You're all dressed up to go dreaming,
Now don't tell me I'm wrong,
And what a night to go dreaming,
Mind if I tag along?

If I say “I love you”
I want you to know
It's not just because there's moonlight, although -
Moonlight becomes you so. (song lyrics by Johnny Burke)

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Finally, this 5 minute video is a real delight!



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FRIDAY 17TH JULY

Silence is deep as Eternity, speech is as shallow as Time. (Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881)



The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way.
Some see nature all ridicule and deformity, and some scarce see nature at all.
But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself. (William Blake 1757-1827)

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This painting “Small Meadows in Spring” is by Alfred Sisley (1839-1899), one of the French Impressionists.



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Pansies, lilies, kingcups, daisies,
Let them live upon their praises;
Long as there’s a sun that sets,
Primroses will have their glory;
Long as there are violets,
They will have a place in story;
There’s a flower that shall be mine,
‘Tis the little Celandine. (William Wordsworth 1770-1850)



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The music here is the well-known Serenade by Schubert played on violin and piano. I don't know who the musicians are.



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FRIDAY 10TH JULY

“Music has charms to soothe the savage breast.” So said William Congreve in his play The Mourning Bride (1697)



Here are some of my favourite quotes on the subject of music -

Of all noises, I think music is the least disagreeable. (Samuel Johnson)

I don't know anything about music. In my line you don't have to. (Elvis Presley)

Wagner's music is better than it sounds. (Edgar Wilson Nye)

Music is the only language in which you cannot say a mean or sarcastic thing. (John Erskine)

Music with dinner is an insult both to the cook and the musicians. (G.K. Chesterton)

In the presence of great music we have no alternative but to live nobly. (Sean O’Faolin)

An intellectual snob is someone who can listen to the William Tell Overture and not think of The Lone Ranger. (Dan Rather)

After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music. (Aldous Huxley)

Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, he sings. (Ed Gardner)

Music is the wine that fills the cup of silence. (Robert Fripp)

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This painting “Jeunes Filles au Piano” is by Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919)



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Continuing the theme of music, the following lines by W.G. Rothery are very often sung to a melody by Handel -

Art thou troubled?
Music will calm thee,
Art thou weary?
Rest shall be thine,
Rest shall be thine.

Music, source of all gladness,
Heals thy sadness
At her shrine,
Music, music, ever divine.
Music, music calleth
With voice divine.

When the welcome spring is smiling,
All the earth with flow'rs beguiling,
After winter's dreary reign,
Sweetest music doth attend her,
Heav'nly harmonies doth lend her,
Chanting praises in her train,
Chanting praises in her train.

Art thou troubled?
Music will calm thee.

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“The Music Lesson” is by one of the Pre-Raphaelite painters Sir Frederick Leighton (1830-1896)



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Finally, this piece of music used to be a favourite with youngsters learning the piano. It was known as the “Celebrated Minuet by Boccherini.” The accompanying paintings and drawings are all from the 18th century.



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Thanks to Webweaver for the use of the clipart item.
http://www.webweaver.nu/clipart/victorian.shtml

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FRIDAY 3RD JULY

A GARDEN SONG by Henry Austin Dobson (1840-1921)

Here, in this sequestered close,
Bloom the hyacinth and rose;
Here beside the modest stock
Flaunts the flaring hollyhock;
Here, without a pang, one sees
Ranks, conditions, and degrees.

All the seasons run their race
In this quiet resting place;
Peach, and apricot, and fig
Here will ripen and grow big
Here is store and overplus, -
More had not Alcinous! *

Here, in alleys cool and green,
Far ahead the thrush is seen;
Here along the southern wall
Keeps the bee his festival;
All is quiet else - afar
Sounds of toil and turmoil are.

Here be shadows large and long;
Here be spaces meet for song;
Grant, O garden-god, that I,
Now that mood and moment please, -
Find the fair Pierides! **

* In Greek mythology Alcinous was a very wealthy ruler of the island Scheria. He features in the story of Jason and the Argonauts.

** The Pierides were the nine daughters of the King of Emathia. They challenged the Muses to a song contest. The Muses won and changed the girls into magpies. Confusingly, the Muses themselves are also known as the Pierides.

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This is a photograph of Dove Cottage where William Wordsworth and his sister Dorothy lived from 1799 till 1808.



The house is a great tourist attraction, and Jean and I visited it on one of our Lake District Holidays.

Originally an inn called the Dove and Onion, it’s thought that it was probably built in the early part of the 17th century. It was while they lived at Dove Cottage that William produced his finest works.

This poem "Dove Cottage Garden" he wrote just before he and Dorothy were leaving home for a few months.

Sweet Garden-orchard! of all spots that are
The loveliest surely man hath ever found.
Farewell! we leave thee to heaven's peaceful care.
Thee and the cottage which thou dost surround ...

Dear Spot! whom we have watched with tender heed,
Bringing thee chosen plants and blossoms blown
Among the distant mountains, flower and weed
Which thou hast taken to thee as thy own ...

O happy Garden! loved for hours of sleep,
O quiet Garden! loved for waking hours.
For soft half-slumbers that did gently steep
Our spirits, carrying with them dreams of flowers ...

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This is a rather spectacular painting by the Chinese artist Yun Shouping (1633-1690)



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Live more and more in the present, which is ever beautiful and stretches away before and beyond the limits of the past and the future. (Meher Baba 1894-1969)

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The music here is the Humming Chorus from Madam Butterfly by Puccini, provided by Andre Rieu the Dutch violinist, conductor and composer.



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FRIDAY 26TH JUNE

The modest Rose puts forth a thorn,
The humble Sheep a threatening horn;
While the Lily white shall in Love delight,
Nor a thorn, nor a threat stain her beauty bright.
………………………………...........William Blake (1757-1827)

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A haiku -

in the hermit’s hut
a bowl, a bed, a table
and peace



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A Zen story -

One day a poor farmer found a stray horse in his yard. He kept it and found it a great help with his work in the fields.

The neighbours said, “Aren’t you lucky?” The farmer replied, “Perhaps.”

Some time later his son tried to ride the horse, fell off and broke his leg.

The neighbours said, “Aren’t you unlucky?” The farmer replied, “Perhaps.”

When war was declared, all the young men had to go to fight, but, because of his injury, his son was excused.

The neighbours said, “Aren’t you lucky?” The farmer replied, “Perhaps.”

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This picture "Young Woman Drawing" is by the French painter Marie-Denise Villers (1774-1821)



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MAX EHRMANN (1872-1945) was an attorney in Indiana, USA. At the age of 40 he gave up his work to become a writer and nowadays he is best known for his prose poem “Desirata.”



This video gives a visual presentation of the poem against a background of beautiful scenery and the sublime musical accompaniment of Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings.

The whole thing is quite long - 10 minutes, but I’ve watched it many times now and find it very rewarding. If you don’t have time to spare right now, you can see all the words below.



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Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly, and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive him to be. And whatever your labours and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

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FRIDAY 19TH JUNE

In the midst of movement and chaos, keep stillness inside of you. (Deepek Chopra)


Spring has its flowers,
Autumn has its moon,
Summer has its cooling breezes,
Winter has its snow.
If you allow no idle concerns to weigh on your heart,
Your whole life will be one perennial good season. (John C. Wu)



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LOVE’S PHILOSOPHY by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822)

The fountains mingle with the river
And the rivers with the ocean,
The winds of heaven mix for ever
With a sweet emotion;

Nothing in the world is single,
All things by a law divine
In one another’s being mingle -
Why not I with thine?

See the mountain’s kiss high heaven
And the waves clasp one another;
No sister-flower would be forgiven
If it disdain’d its brother;

And the sunlight clasps the earth,
And the moonbeams kiss the sea -
What are all these kissings worth,
If thou kiss not me?

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This painting is by Albrecht Durer (1471-1528)



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DO YOU ASK WHAT THE BIRDS SAY? by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834)

Do you ask what the birds say? The Sparrow, the Dove,
The Linnet and Thrush say, “I love and I love!”
In the winter they’re silent - the wind is so strong;
What it says, I don’t know, but it sings a loud song,
But green leaves and blossoms, and sunny warm weather,
And singing and loving - all come back together.
But the Lark is so brimful of gladness and love,
The green fields below him, the blue sky above,
Then he sings and he sings, and for ever sings he -
“I love my Love, and my Love loves me.”

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I like this version of the Air on a G string by J. S. Bach. It's beautifully played by the Swedish guitarist Per-Olov Kindgren.



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