Autumn Flowers

"Those few pale Autumn flowers,
How beautiful they are!
Than all that went before,
Than all the Summer store,
How lovelier far!

And why? - They are the last!
The last! the last! the last!
Oh! by that little word
How many thoughts are stirred
That whisper of the past!

(Caroline Bowles Southey)

 

 

 

On Poetry

"Poetry isn't a profession, it's a way of life.

It's an empty basket; you put your life into it and make something out of that." (Mary Oliver, b.1935-)

Opal, October Birthstone

In ancient times, the Opal was known as the Queen of Gems because it encompassed the colors of all other gems. Each Opal is truly one-of-a-kind; as unique as our fingerprints. Some prefer the calming flashes of blues and greens; others love the bright reds and yellows. With its rainbow of colors, as you turn and move the Opal, the color plays and shifts, giving a gem the rare opportunity to be worn with a plethora of ensembles. Australia’s Lightning Ridge is known for its rare and stunning black Opals. The ideal Opal is one that displays broad patterns covering the surface, with all the colors of the rainbow, including red.

Recommended list for reading and discussion:

                Etan, Eric. (2011) Opals. – Gareth Stevens Publishers. – 24 pages. (Gems: Nature’s

                Jewels).

Arts and Science

"Without art, we should have no notion of the sacred;

 without science, we should always worship false gods." (W. H. Auden, 1907-1973)

 

 

Photographer: Ida Tomshinsky, c.2012
Orlando, FL

Keep Moving

"Life is riding a bicycle.

To keep your balance, you must keep moving."

(Albert Einstein)

A Sentence

A sentence is like a tune. A memorable sentence gives its emotion a melodic shape. You want to hear it again, say it - in a way, to hum it to yourself. You desire, if only in the sound studio of your imagination, to repeat the physical experience of that sentence. That craving, emotional and intellectual but beginning in the body with a certain gesture of sound, is near the heart of poetry. (Robert Pinsky)