Oh dear, wad/wade, wad is promounced wod, isn't it!
Thought of these last night:
quit/quite twin/twine fin/fine
writ/write Whit/white input/impute rid/ride Sid/side win/wine hug/huge sat/sate Tim/time wad/wade hop/hope
I feel so chuffed when I think of new pairs. It's better than counting sheep for sending me to sleep. I'm even looking for them as I read.
PS I know input/impute has a different letter at the beginning but I thought it was still worthy of a mention. (For years, I actually thought that the spelling of input was 'imput'! What an admission?!)
Wednesday 13 December 2017
Wednesday 15 November 2017
More silent e word pairs - and oddities
ban/bane van/vane rod/rode
bed/Bede (Saint and historian)
car/care(?) war/ware(?)!!
bed/Bede (Saint and historian)
car/care(?) war/ware(?)!!
Saturday 11 November 2017
A further update on skinning potatoes
I have reverted to the tried and tested method of cooking jacket potatoes, ie pricking the skin all over, using my short sharp knife end.
After leaving the cooked (ie softish to the feel) article for 2 minutes (ish), I then put a cross in the middle of one side, dip in cold water, peel and rinse.
This is working really well, with both microwave and oven methods, without the potato breaking up as much.
PS There is an art to not over-cooking the potato (which I haven't entirely mastered, despite using this method, nearly every day!). If they are too soft the flesh sticks to the skin and I have to scrape off (and eat, of course).
(Original post 19.9.17)
After leaving the cooked (ie softish to the feel) article for 2 minutes (ish), I then put a cross in the middle of one side, dip in cold water, peel and rinse.
This is working really well, with both microwave and oven methods, without the potato breaking up as much.
PS There is an art to not over-cooking the potato (which I haven't entirely mastered, despite using this method, nearly every day!). If they are too soft the flesh sticks to the skin and I have to scrape off (and eat, of course).
(Original post 19.9.17)
Saturday 21 October 2017
About having music in school
Richard Ingrams wrote a column in the Catholic Herald (Sept 22, 2017), deeply regretting the tendency for music to be one of the first victims of financial pressure in schools today. In its defence, he quoted none other than Franz Schubert as follows:
"..writing about his reaction to hearing some music of Mozart's (unspecified): "So do these lovely impressions, which neither time nor circumstance can efface, remain in the mind and influence for good our whole exisitence. In the dark places of life they point to that clear shining and distant future in which our whole hope lies." "
How true that is, today as then. It should be as important an aspect of children's education for life as any other subject. It stands every chance of being something that will stay with them all their lives, long after they forgotten much of the rest.
"..writing about his reaction to hearing some music of Mozart's (unspecified): "So do these lovely impressions, which neither time nor circumstance can efface, remain in the mind and influence for good our whole exisitence. In the dark places of life they point to that clear shining and distant future in which our whole hope lies." "
How true that is, today as then. It should be as important an aspect of children's education for life as any other subject. It stands every chance of being something that will stay with them all their lives, long after they forgotten much of the rest.
Sunday 8 October 2017
About what people do - and why
How easy it is to see what other people do -
and how hard to know why they do it
(for them as much as for us, I imagine).
and how hard to know why they do it
(for them as much as for us, I imagine).
Monday 2 October 2017
Having just watched a programme about the history of Jerusalem
My abiding reaction, "Haven't we all a lot to answer for as members of the human race!!"
The magical 'silent e' - updates +
Added above:
envelop/envelope
quit/quite twin/twine fin/fine
hug/huge sat/sate Tim/time wad/wade hop/hope
scrap/scrape
ban/bane van/vane rod/rode
bed/Bede (Saint and historian)
war/ware(?)!!
Some more:
cloth/clothe cod/code met/mete dot/dote cot/cote
pin/pine but/Bute (Isle of) bud/ Bude (Cornwall) dud/dude(?)
(even pet/Pete)
The first post
spin/spine shin/shine breath/breathe lath/lathe
cut/cute thin/thine fad/fade bad/bade
Oh how I love this 'rule', unknown to me in childhood but learnt whilst on a supply teaching post.
The 'silent e' makes the letter SOUND its NAME, ie. 'a' as in fat becomes 'a' as in fate. There are loads of examples out there. If, like me, you love words and hadn't known this rule, you may enjoy spotting your own.
Ever since then, I've been on the look out for unusual specimens, of which 'lath', an answer in a crossword was my most recent discovery. I was really chuffed with that one. (Also, I hadn't realised before that a lath is a thin piece of wood (the clue!!). The things you can learn from a crossword, eh, that is if you can remember them the next time you see the clue, which I usually can't.)
Is 'car/care' an example, do you think?
envelop/envelope
quit/quite twin/twine fin/fine
hug/huge sat/sate Tim/time wad/wade hop/hope
scrap/scrape
ban/bane van/vane rod/rode
bed/Bede (Saint and historian)
war/ware(?)!!
Some more:
cloth/clothe cod/code met/mete dot/dote cot/cote
pin/pine but/Bute (Isle of) bud/ Bude (Cornwall) dud/dude(?)
(even pet/Pete)
The first post
spin/spine shin/shine breath/breathe lath/lathe
cut/cute thin/thine fad/fade bad/bade
Oh how I love this 'rule', unknown to me in childhood but learnt whilst on a supply teaching post.
The 'silent e' makes the letter SOUND its NAME, ie. 'a' as in fat becomes 'a' as in fate. There are loads of examples out there. If, like me, you love words and hadn't known this rule, you may enjoy spotting your own.
Ever since then, I've been on the look out for unusual specimens, of which 'lath', an answer in a crossword was my most recent discovery. I was really chuffed with that one. (Also, I hadn't realised before that a lath is a thin piece of wood (the clue!!). The things you can learn from a crossword, eh, that is if you can remember them the next time you see the clue, which I usually can't.)
Is 'car/care' an example, do you think?
About the depths and the heights to which the human heart can sink or rise
Let us not try to fathom the depths to which the human heart can sink
but not forget to rejoice in the heights to which it can rise.
but not forget to rejoice in the heights to which it can rise.
To parents about children and gratitude
Dear Parents,
I believe that bringing children up to feel and to show gratitude
for all the good things in their lives
is one of the most important gifts they can be given.
I believe that bringing children up to feel and to show gratitude
for all the good things in their lives
is one of the most important gifts they can be given.
Sunday 1 October 2017
About loving Lowry
This thought came to me this morning
Do we who love Lowry's work,
do so because the man is in the paintings?
Art critics may be disdainful but, for me, in those of his pictures which I love, I find the man;
his feelings, his humanity, his woundedness even, his vision.
This is enough - and more.
He is like all of us,
ordinary and extraordinary,
both at the same time,
all of us in our own unique and individual ways.
Do we who love Lowry's work,
do so because the man is in the paintings?
Art critics may be disdainful but, for me, in those of his pictures which I love, I find the man;
his feelings, his humanity, his woundedness even, his vision.
This is enough - and more.
He is like all of us,
ordinary and extraordinary,
both at the same time,
all of us in our own unique and individual ways.
A wish for those we love
May the sun shine on them,
internally and externally.
Not quite sure what I meant by this but it's written in my notebook so it must have meant something at the time.
internally and externally.
Not quite sure what I meant by this but it's written in my notebook so it must have meant something at the time.
Sunday 24 September 2017
About a precious moment last week
H = husband
On Wednesday, a sunny afternoon saw H and I at our local beauty spot, on our first, and, as usual, only, blackberrying sortie this year. Every September, I always have the romantic intention to find the lovely fruit which, often, by the time we manage to get there, has all gone!!
Still, we walked around the pool, passing a lovely little family, consisting of mum and two young children (inset-training day at school). As is the wont of ladies of my age and inclination, I have to talk to the children. They were delightful and followed us round, chatting as we went.
As we turned our different ways, we, to continue our, literally, fruitless effort and they to return to their car, the little boy (two years old - birthday, bonfire night, we'd learned) came running back and jumped up to both of us for a hug, followed, shyly, by his lovely five year old sister.
It made our day and, in bed that night, its remembrance brought a smile of pure joy to me. Such precious moments mean so much. What a lovely job their parents have done to give them the confidence to be so free and natural, so open and loving. Long may it last and may they never be hurt by it.
Saturday 23 September 2017
About Stoicism
I read this definition recently and really liked it.
"Stoicism is.....coming to terms with reality and learning to live with it."
The writer (Quentin de la Bedoyere) continues with an example:
"So, if you crash your car and you are jumping up and down with rage, a passing Stoic would tell you that your anger is pointless - just accept the crash and think about your next rational step."
He goes on to add, "Easier said than done, but you suspect that he's right." , and ends the article with these words: "I would like to report that I am far advanced in my Stoicism but it is a work in progress. It certainly helps me to reduce irrational anxieties even if I cannot always quench them. And I have far fewer occasions of panic."
It sounds like it's well worth applying the Stoic approach. I hope to remember to try!
Catholic Herald: August 25 2017
"Stoicism is.....coming to terms with reality and learning to live with it."
The writer (Quentin de la Bedoyere) continues with an example:
"So, if you crash your car and you are jumping up and down with rage, a passing Stoic would tell you that your anger is pointless - just accept the crash and think about your next rational step."
He goes on to add, "Easier said than done, but you suspect that he's right." , and ends the article with these words: "I would like to report that I am far advanced in my Stoicism but it is a work in progress. It certainly helps me to reduce irrational anxieties even if I cannot always quench them. And I have far fewer occasions of panic."
It sounds like it's well worth applying the Stoic approach. I hope to remember to try!
Catholic Herald: August 25 2017
Wednesday 20 September 2017
About gender bending
Dear people of this world,
Do not, I beg you, mess about with gender. If you do, you are pulling apart the chain of life; not the chain which binds but the chain which holds together the miraculous helix of humanity.
All life is meant to be interlocked. It is the 'lego of love', the interconnectedness of human existence.
Do not, I beg you, mess about with gender. If you do, you are pulling apart the chain of life; not the chain which binds but the chain which holds together the miraculous helix of humanity.
All life is meant to be interlocked. It is the 'lego of love', the interconnectedness of human existence.
Tuesday 19 September 2017
Another update on skinning potatoes - take 2
Tried the cross on both sides of three largish potatoes in the (fan) oven on 180 and it worked well. I don't think I made the cuts quite deep emough so will try again but it was still the best method so far!
Tried 1 small and 2 large potatoes in the MV today with one deep cross cut into the top of each potato. It worked really well.
PS Be careful not to cut too deeply because the soft white inner part can come off too easily and the potato can fall apart.
Monday 18 September 2017
An update on 'skinning' potatoes
In these last few days, someone mentioned, coincidently, that restaurants put a deepish score on their jacket potatoes to cook them through more easily. I've tried it twice since then and it works marvellously, skins peeling off really well.
So deepish scores on both sides of the potato is now my favoured option. (I haven't tried the oven yet but it worked really well in the microwave.)
So deepish scores on both sides of the potato is now my favoured option. (I haven't tried the oven yet but it worked really well in the microwave.)
Monday 11 September 2017
About there being no such thing as 'luck'
For years now, I have driven people of my acquaintance mad by the statement above; so much so, that I have to desist saying it every time I hear someone say, "Oh, I've been so lucky .....etc.". Don't believe it, it's not true.
Let's take the ordinary example of tossing a coin. Under normal circumstances, it is entirely impossible to predict which way it will fall but that doesn't mean that there is no cause for it's landing on its head or its tail.
What it does mean is that there are so many factors at play, the speed, direction, weight, external conditions, etc, that are 'unmeasurable', the outcome can be said to be unpredictable, unless there were some new, very hi-tech means to achieve this.
If something good comes as a result of our having called the 'right' result, we may feel that we have been 'lucky', when actually, it was pure science at play! Statistically, it is true that the more times a coin is tossed, the more the result will tend towards a 50/50 outcome; although it is possible, but highly unlikely, that 100 tosses could give 100 heads.
A personally irritating example is to be found in virtually every Wimbledon match commentary. Each time a player wins or loses a point due to the ball just rolling over or falling back from the net, it is said to be 'lucky' or 'unlucky' whereas that outcome is entiely due to the speed, direction and force of the winning or loosing player's shot.
There is, though, the element of chance. I wouldn't even like to begin to define the word but I do know that its mathematical and scientific study has formed the foundation of the subjects of Statistics and Probability and many of the advances in the modern world have come from the direction of those studies.
Take the example of a ticket being pulled out of a bag of raffle tickets. The hand goes in at a certain position and alights on one and decides to pick it out. If there are a hundred tickets and you have bought one of them then you have a 1 in a 100 chance of being the winner but it is entirely due to the circumstances of the shaking of the bag etc and the location of your ticket amongst all the others, another unknowable factor; merely science again.
The question is, "Does it really matter if we believe in good or bad 'luck'? Well I believe it does. In the case of 'good luck', it can perhaps make us feel that we are 'favoured' in some way, which we are not. In the case of so-called 'bad luck' it can make us feel that we are victims of 'fate', impotent, powerless against forces which we are unable to control or resist in any way. Whereas, if we believe that everything has a cause, then causes can be discerned and maybe overcome.
My scientific knowledge and (I'd like to believe) common sense, limited though they may be, tell me that every occurrence in life has a physical cause. Whether or not we can discern it is another matter but at least we can try!
Let's take the ordinary example of tossing a coin. Under normal circumstances, it is entirely impossible to predict which way it will fall but that doesn't mean that there is no cause for it's landing on its head or its tail.
What it does mean is that there are so many factors at play, the speed, direction, weight, external conditions, etc, that are 'unmeasurable', the outcome can be said to be unpredictable, unless there were some new, very hi-tech means to achieve this.
If something good comes as a result of our having called the 'right' result, we may feel that we have been 'lucky', when actually, it was pure science at play! Statistically, it is true that the more times a coin is tossed, the more the result will tend towards a 50/50 outcome; although it is possible, but highly unlikely, that 100 tosses could give 100 heads.
A personally irritating example is to be found in virtually every Wimbledon match commentary. Each time a player wins or loses a point due to the ball just rolling over or falling back from the net, it is said to be 'lucky' or 'unlucky' whereas that outcome is entiely due to the speed, direction and force of the winning or loosing player's shot.
There is, though, the element of chance. I wouldn't even like to begin to define the word but I do know that its mathematical and scientific study has formed the foundation of the subjects of Statistics and Probability and many of the advances in the modern world have come from the direction of those studies.
Take the example of a ticket being pulled out of a bag of raffle tickets. The hand goes in at a certain position and alights on one and decides to pick it out. If there are a hundred tickets and you have bought one of them then you have a 1 in a 100 chance of being the winner but it is entirely due to the circumstances of the shaking of the bag etc and the location of your ticket amongst all the others, another unknowable factor; merely science again.
The question is, "Does it really matter if we believe in good or bad 'luck'? Well I believe it does. In the case of 'good luck', it can perhaps make us feel that we are 'favoured' in some way, which we are not. In the case of so-called 'bad luck' it can make us feel that we are victims of 'fate', impotent, powerless against forces which we are unable to control or resist in any way. Whereas, if we believe that everything has a cause, then causes can be discerned and maybe overcome.
My scientific knowledge and (I'd like to believe) common sense, limited though they may be, tell me that every occurrence in life has a physical cause. Whether or not we can discern it is another matter but at least we can try!
Sunday 10 September 2017
About my baggy cotton cardigan
I am a great lover of wearing cotton clothes, especially in summer.
Having found what I thought was a very useful white cotton cardigan in Gap, I was disappointed to find that, after what I considered to be way too short a period of time, it became baggy and shapeless!! Having DEFINITELY NOT had my 'money's worth' out of it, I was seriously disgruntled and about to put it in the bag of rags for the charity shop!!
The fact that it also had a tea/coffee/unspecified small stain on it, which was down to nobody's fault except my own was, sadly, another factor. My usual cold water/soap/vanish-soap treatment having failed, compounded its fate.
HOWEVER, a reprieve has been granted and it has been spared. I am also a very cold body in bed and needed a summer bed-jacket. Inspiration made me try my baggy cardigan and - guess what - it's perfect. I snuggle inside it, happpily warm and very happy to be getting more value for my money.
I feel so happy that my ugly duckling cardigan has become my super-duper summer bed-jacket.
Having found what I thought was a very useful white cotton cardigan in Gap, I was disappointed to find that, after what I considered to be way too short a period of time, it became baggy and shapeless!! Having DEFINITELY NOT had my 'money's worth' out of it, I was seriously disgruntled and about to put it in the bag of rags for the charity shop!!
The fact that it also had a tea/coffee/unspecified small stain on it, which was down to nobody's fault except my own was, sadly, another factor. My usual cold water/soap/vanish-soap treatment having failed, compounded its fate.
HOWEVER, a reprieve has been granted and it has been spared. I am also a very cold body in bed and needed a summer bed-jacket. Inspiration made me try my baggy cardigan and - guess what - it's perfect. I snuggle inside it, happpily warm and very happy to be getting more value for my money.
I feel so happy that my ugly duckling cardigan has become my super-duper summer bed-jacket.
Husband's thoughts about criticism
Apropos of various chats over breakfast, husband (H) came out with a string of comments which I thought were so great, I tried to jot them down. Sadly, they spilled out so quickly, I couldn't keep up but will try to give the gist.
He did admit that, when younger, he was up there with those who do criticise (I'm happy to vouch for that one!) but that age had mellowed him and given him some wisdom and realisation that no-one can or should judge.
By this time, he was on a roll and I couldn't keep up but I was impressed and touched and proud. He's a man of instinct and when in full spate, can talk a lot of sense (and sometimes not, but that's another story!).
- "If you want to speak against something, STUDY it!"
- You have to earn the right to criticise something!"
- You have to love something before you have the right to criticise it."
- People want to criticise something because it scares them."
- The only thing that works is example."
He did admit that, when younger, he was up there with those who do criticise (I'm happy to vouch for that one!) but that age had mellowed him and given him some wisdom and realisation that no-one can or should judge.
By this time, he was on a roll and I couldn't keep up but I was impressed and touched and proud. He's a man of instinct and when in full spate, can talk a lot of sense (and sometimes not, but that's another story!).
Friday 8 September 2017
About skinning potatoes (plus a PPS)
There is no-one on God's earth who can convince me that eating a potato skin is a good thing to do, although I admit I do have an OCD issue with cleaning/rinsing food.
Skin, as far as I know, is dead material and, furthermore, potato skins are dirty, which they have a right to be, considering that they are grown in soil. No amount of (over-labour-intensive, in my view anyway) scrubbing induces me to wish to eat them, even though I'm assured that the heat has taken care of the possible germs. It's the dirt I'm bothered about.
So how to remove the skins. There are two main problems with potato peelers; one, they almost always take too much potato away, thereby removing the most nutritionally important part which is just BELOW the skin and two, peeling is such a horrible job!
Hence, I have come quite a long way in developing methods of skinning my spuds. Following are some tips for the various methods of cooking, should you wish to try. The basic principle is to 'cook' to just softening level, leave for about 2 minutes, dip in cold water and strip the skin away (I use my fingers) and rinse with clean water.
PS Sometimes, the skin comes off so cleanly, it's a joy, but, often, chunks of potato stay on the skin. I look on that as my perk because I eat those bits as I go along; naughty but nice, as I am a great lover of potatoes!
Skin, as far as I know, is dead material and, furthermore, potato skins are dirty, which they have a right to be, considering that they are grown in soil. No amount of (over-labour-intensive, in my view anyway) scrubbing induces me to wish to eat them, even though I'm assured that the heat has taken care of the possible germs. It's the dirt I'm bothered about.
So how to remove the skins. There are two main problems with potato peelers; one, they almost always take too much potato away, thereby removing the most nutritionally important part which is just BELOW the skin and two, peeling is such a horrible job!
Hence, I have come quite a long way in developing methods of skinning my spuds. Following are some tips for the various methods of cooking, should you wish to try. The basic principle is to 'cook' to just softening level, leave for about 2 minutes, dip in cold water and strip the skin away (I use my fingers) and rinse with clean water.
- MIcrowave (only really useful for 1-4 potatoes) Score each potato with a sharp knife. I have tried a cross on each side but am now going for a ring around the middle or longways or occasionally both.
- Oven (Temp approximately 180) Place the potatoes on a metal dish (sometimes, I put some water in as well to keep them soft), place in the oven for about 40 minutes. Strip the skins as above and then continue to cook as roast or whole or wedges until cooked through. This works on higher or lower temperatures by adjusting the timing. PPS I drizzle the surface of the potatoes with oil (sunflower is supposed to be better for high temperatures) having shaken the skinned potatoes in water to ruffle the outside for roasties.
- Saucepan This method works really well for new potatoes and though fiddly, it is, to my mind, a lot easier than scraping. I always start cooking them earlier than usual because the skinning is done at the end of the cooking. I find this method is not as successful with old potatoes because they tend to go mushy but I still prefer it because I hate all the waste of potato that peeling produces.
PS Sometimes, the skin comes off so cleanly, it's a joy, but, often, chunks of potato stay on the skin. I look on that as my perk because I eat those bits as I go along; naughty but nice, as I am a great lover of potatoes!
Thursday 31 August 2017
Tuesday 25 July 2017
About putting away the washing
Like most things,
post, shopping, toys,
ironing, clothes in general,
anything you like to mention actually,
if you don't keep up with it,
it spreads out and surrounds you.
And don't I know it!!
post, shopping, toys,
ironing, clothes in general,
anything you like to mention actually,
if you don't keep up with it,
it spreads out and surrounds you.
And don't I know it!!
Friday 23 June 2017
Two quick prayers for the day
Dear God,
Please help me to be and do the best I can.
Be with me today every step of the way.
Thank you, Amen.
Please help me to be and do the best I can.
Be with me today every step of the way.
Thank you, Amen.
Thursday 8 June 2017
Wednesday 7 June 2017
A thought from watching the recent 'George Gently' episode
In our human process of justice,
we cannot judge the person but only the action of the person.
To seek understanding is not to excuse but rather to explain.
we cannot judge the person but only the action of the person.
To seek understanding is not to excuse but rather to explain.
Sunday 30 April 2017
About Socrates
Extracts from an article by Quentin de la Bedoyere: Catholic Herald 7.4.17
......He held that to write things down was to close the argument. But he taught that knowledge was a dynamic process: we can never claim to know the truth and the best we can do is to recognise our ignorance. In that way, we beat down the barriers to knowledge.
.... His superior wisdom, he concluded, was that he knew the extent of his own ignorance.
Socrates was not popular. Going around pointing out people's errors is not a recipe for popularity. Indeed, even his friends could find him aggravating as he picked holes in their common-sense ideas. And he did so simply by asking questions, which obliged his victim to discover his errors for himself.
Socrates's great enemies were the sophists. These were the pseudo-intellectuals who went around Athens selling their false truths. We have plenty of these nowadays on our media..........The general and public view was that Socrates was a comic old idiot, ...... capable of "making the weaker argument defeat the stronger".
...... But we like our heroes, and recognising Socrates as the prophet of moral virtue...... is an indulgence I am happy to grant my self.
Me too; I like the sound of him!
......He held that to write things down was to close the argument. But he taught that knowledge was a dynamic process: we can never claim to know the truth and the best we can do is to recognise our ignorance. In that way, we beat down the barriers to knowledge.
.... His superior wisdom, he concluded, was that he knew the extent of his own ignorance.
Socrates was not popular. Going around pointing out people's errors is not a recipe for popularity. Indeed, even his friends could find him aggravating as he picked holes in their common-sense ideas. And he did so simply by asking questions, which obliged his victim to discover his errors for himself.
Socrates's great enemies were the sophists. These were the pseudo-intellectuals who went around Athens selling their false truths. We have plenty of these nowadays on our media..........The general and public view was that Socrates was a comic old idiot, ...... capable of "making the weaker argument defeat the stronger".
...... But we like our heroes, and recognising Socrates as the prophet of moral virtue...... is an indulgence I am happy to grant my self.
Me too; I like the sound of him!
Wednesday 8 March 2017
Together - A wedding poem
I have turned my face towards you
And you will see,
From my way and from my willing,
I shall not turn away.
We will stand and walk together,
To each inclined;
Our lives now interwoven,
And love shall light our path.
This poem virtually wrote itself around the time that husband and I were married.
It seems to me to follow on from the previous two.
(It hasn't always been a docile path but we are still on it.)
Friday 3 March 2017
Poem - The land of Unsmiling Eyes
And here I stand
Lone in this land,
Where eyes unsmiling go,
As so go I.
I, as driftwood,
Cast adrift on strange seas,
Buffeted and tossed by waves,
Which hither, thither, all seemingly, at random flow,
As so go I.
But you as strength,
Becalm those stormy seas,
And, as a calm and steady breeze
Instills tranquillity in waves to gently flow,
Then so go I.
And here we stand,
Joined is this land
Where eyes now smiling go,
As so go we.
The first two verses of this poem came into my head at around the same time as the previous poem.
When I met husband-to-be, he, on my reading the rather woeful lines to him, though never a big lover of poetry, came up with the ideas for the last two verses, which, if nothing else, are certainly more upbeat, to say the least!!
Lone in this land,
Where eyes unsmiling go,
As so go I.
I, as driftwood,
Cast adrift on strange seas,
Buffeted and tossed by waves,
Which hither, thither, all seemingly, at random flow,
As so go I.
But you as strength,
Becalm those stormy seas,
And, as a calm and steady breeze
Instills tranquillity in waves to gently flow,
Then so go I.
And here we stand,
Joined is this land
Where eyes now smiling go,
As so go we.
The first two verses of this poem came into my head at around the same time as the previous poem.
When I met husband-to-be, he, on my reading the rather woeful lines to him, though never a big lover of poetry, came up with the ideas for the last two verses, which, if nothing else, are certainly more upbeat, to say the least!!
A poem - Dreamer
No foolish fantasiser, I.
Rather are my dreams
Impassioned facets of my reality,
Flamed, from time to time, from within;
Fired by sudden stoking of the heart's furnace,
Which had learned, in pain, to quietly feed
The soul's suppressed requirement.
Of the ten or so poems I have written through the years, this one pleases me quite a lot.
I was in my mid-twenties with my life going through somewhat of a turmoil at the time.
The words just came to me as I stood in the kitchen and I wrote them down exactly as they are here.
Rather are my dreams
Impassioned facets of my reality,
Flamed, from time to time, from within;
Fired by sudden stoking of the heart's furnace,
Which had learned, in pain, to quietly feed
The soul's suppressed requirement.
Of the ten or so poems I have written through the years, this one pleases me quite a lot.
I was in my mid-twenties with my life going through somewhat of a turmoil at the time.
The words just came to me as I stood in the kitchen and I wrote them down exactly as they are here.
About glimpses of beauty - on the train
Our senses are the gateway to beauty.
Sight, sound, touch, taste, aroma,
all take us into the world of delight.
Sight, sound, touch, taste, aroma,
all take us into the world of delight.
Tuesday 31 January 2017
On a 'bad-weather' day
I am one of those annoying people who really doesn't mind any type of weather and can genuinely find benefits in all of them. Now, be fair, this is an asset, surely, in countries like ours!
Today is a case in point; it has been dull and gloomy, and now rainy, ALL day. I rub my internal hands together and think, aaah, a great day for just being in all day, doing those little jobs which we LIKE to put off for a rainy day OR, even better, for phoning friends we haven't spoken to for ages (as I have been doing since yesterday - gorgeous!).
I had sorted all my favourite pictures from last year's many calendars, all landscapes or trees or the beautiful things that family and friends know I love. I gave the tiled wall in the kitchen its once yearly fairy-liquid winter-clean and this afternoon, have spread out my collection and positioned them, for a change, to my satisfaction at the first go.
I actually based the idea on best friend S's mum's kitchen which I visited once many years ago. She had pictures up and down the walls and they looked marvellous. She said she preferred them where she could see them all the time. My efforts are part of her legacy to the world, I reckon.
I have taken a photo of them and posted it on our family whatsapp site, dubbing it 'Kitchen gallery 2017'. Some of the family who understand my ways and like to humour me have commented; daughter no. 1 'Lovely', son no.2 'Nice hang, Mum', granddaughter no.1 'Lovely, Gran'.
So, come rain or shine, it's all one with me.
The very best thing was, of course, the chats. I was poorly too, so I was actually, for a change, on lighter duties. Old school friend, T, over the phone, said it sounded like the Queen's flu so if it's good enough for Her Lovely Majesty, it has to be good enough for me.
Today is a case in point; it has been dull and gloomy, and now rainy, ALL day. I rub my internal hands together and think, aaah, a great day for just being in all day, doing those little jobs which we LIKE to put off for a rainy day OR, even better, for phoning friends we haven't spoken to for ages (as I have been doing since yesterday - gorgeous!).
I had sorted all my favourite pictures from last year's many calendars, all landscapes or trees or the beautiful things that family and friends know I love. I gave the tiled wall in the kitchen its once yearly fairy-liquid winter-clean and this afternoon, have spread out my collection and positioned them, for a change, to my satisfaction at the first go.
I actually based the idea on best friend S's mum's kitchen which I visited once many years ago. She had pictures up and down the walls and they looked marvellous. She said she preferred them where she could see them all the time. My efforts are part of her legacy to the world, I reckon.
I have taken a photo of them and posted it on our family whatsapp site, dubbing it 'Kitchen gallery 2017'. Some of the family who understand my ways and like to humour me have commented; daughter no. 1 'Lovely', son no.2 'Nice hang, Mum', granddaughter no.1 'Lovely, Gran'.
So, come rain or shine, it's all one with me.
The very best thing was, of course, the chats. I was poorly too, so I was actually, for a change, on lighter duties. Old school friend, T, over the phone, said it sounded like the Queen's flu so if it's good enough for Her Lovely Majesty, it has to be good enough for me.
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