Forever is a metaphor for now,
Imagining the moment shorn of motion,
Finding its analogy in how
The sense of self is separate from the notion.
Years erode us more than we allow.
Fear not, for in poetry is truth.
Our place among the gods remains assured.
Upon the rock of beauty lies the proof
Regarding what of wonder has endured.
Italia, my Italia, at thy name:
And when from out the mountain's heart I came
And saw the land for which my life had yearned,
I laughed as one who some great prize had earned:
And musing on the marvel of thy fame
I watched the day, till marked with wounds of flame
The turquoise sky to burnished gold was turned.
The pine-trees waved as waves a woman's hair,
And in the orchards every twining spray
Was breaking into flakes of blossoming foam:
But when I knew that far away at Rome
In evil bonds a second Peter lay,
I wept to see the land so very fair.
TURIN.
GYPSY
I asked a gypsy pal
To imitate an old image
And speak old wisdom.
She drew in her chin,
Made her neck and head
The top piece of a Nile obelisk
and said:
Snatch off the gag from thy mouth, child,
And be free to keep silence.
Tell no man anything for no man listens,
Yet hold thy lips ready to speak.
Carl Sandburg
Computer Mice |
by Todd-Michael St. Pierre |
Can anyone give me advice . . . ? What to do with computer mice? At night they come out And race all about. Each mouse and it's spouse Invading my house. They wreck my office And they're not too nice. What to do with computer mice? Wait, I hadn't thought about that - Perhaps, I'll get a computer cat! |
The Sea |
by Elizabeth Tew |
Transfixed I stand and watch the Tireless Sea As it's waves crash upon the shore, spraying it's white, salty foam Against the jagged rocks and cliffs below, then returning into itself The tireless sea wherein its immeasurable depth secrets lie buried, never to be revealed The tireless sea whose temperament is so mystifying it neither fears, nor needs any man but gathers its strength from within. |
If I Could Catch a Rainbow
© Sandra Lewis Pringle, sent by Wendy Hinson
From Sandra's book Sing Loudly as Lions Roar.
If I could catch a rainbow, I would do it, just for you,
And, share with you, its beauty, on the days you're feeling blue.
If I could, I would build a mountain, you could call your very own.
A place to find serenity, a place just to be alone.
If I could, I would take your troubles, and toss them into the sea.
But, all these things, I'm finding, are impossible for me.
I cannot build a mountain, or catch a rainbow fair;
but, let me be, what I know best,
A Friend, who's always there.
I promise to defend you, should the occasion ever rise,
And, I promise to wipe away the tears,
which might stream from your weeping eyes.
Let me be the trusted Friend, the one that you know best.
I will never leave you, on that, you can surely rest.
Had a dream last night, it was so real
Now I think I know, how you would feel
Saw your face so clear, Your eyes bright too
It was just a dream, I could swear it was you
Thought I felt your skin, as you lay by my side
My hair whisked from my face, as you did in one stride
Felt my body get warm, and I melted closer to you
It was just a dream, I could swear it was you
Your voice was the same, as I've heard you talk to me
The words were soft and sincere, you made me believe
Heard a crack in your voice, as you spoke of me and you
It was just a dream, I could swear it was you
Smelled the scent of your cologne, as your cheek touched mine
Brought my heart to skip a beat, the feeling was divine
I fell in love in this dream, I must tell you its true
It was just a dream, But I could swear it was YOU
that's what good for the soul:
peeking into windows
watching tired housewives
trying to fight off
their beer-maddened husbands.
poisons the air like fallout,
I come again to see
the serene, great picture that I love.
Here space and time exist in light
the eye like the eye of faith believes.
The seen, the known
dissolve in iridescence, become
illusive flesh of light
that was not, was, forever is.
O light beheld as through refracting tears.
Here is the aura of that world
each of us has lost.
Here is the shadow of its joy.
October gave a party;
The leaves by hundreds came -
The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples,
And leaves of every name.
The Sunshine spread a carpet,
And everything was grand,
Miss Weather led the dancing,
Professor Wind the band.
~George Cooper, "October's Party"
Browsing the dim back corner
Of a musty antique shop
Opened an old book of poetry
Angels flew out from the pages
I caught the whiff of a soul
The ink seemed fresh as today
Was that voices whispering?
The tree of the paper still grows.
~Pixie Foudre
Coming thro' the rye, poor body, O, Jenny's a' wat, poor body; Gin a body meet a body Gin a body meet a bodyComing Through The Rye by Robert Burns
Coming thro' the rye,
She draiglet a' her petticoatie
Coming thro' the rye.
Jenny's seldom dry;
She draiglet a' her petticoatie
Coming thro' the rye.
Coming thro' the rye,
Gin a body kiss a body -
Need a body cry?
Coming thro' the glen,
Gin a body kiss a body -
Need the warld ken?
The sea was sapphire coloured, and the skyGreece by Oscar Wilde
Burned like a heated opal through the air;
We hoisted sail; the wind was blowing fair
For the blue lands that to the eastward lie.
From the steep prow I marked with quickening eye
Zakynthos, every olive grove and creek,
Ithaca's cliff, Lycaon's snowy peak,
And all the flower-strewn hills of Arcady.
The flapping of the sail against the mast,
The ripple of the water on the side,
The ripple of girls' laughter at the stern,
The only sounds: -when 'gan the West to burn,
And a red sun upon the seas to ride,
I stood upon the soil of Greece at last!
It can't be stolen, won't pollute, Relieves your tension and your stress, Your circulation it corrects
Author UnknownNo moving parts, no batteries,
No monthly payments and no fees.
Inflation-proof, non-taxable,
In fact, it's quite relaxable.
One size fits all, do not dilute.
It uses little energy,
But yields results enormously.
Invigorate your happiness.
Combats depression, makes you beam,
And elevates your self-esteem!
Without unpleasant side effects.
It is, I think, the perfect drug:
May I prescribe, my friend, the hug!
By Elizabeth Ara BadilloAbout seven hours
No sound
No voice
Time to think
Time to fear
Time to hope
Time to wonder
Time to remember
My Time
Time to wake up
only to fall back to sleep
Time to realize
Time to think about what
should be done
Nothing done in all that time
Time's up
Time wasted
I need a cigarette.
Samhain
If the drums had continued beating
And warriors dwelled upon the landWe would dance to a different drummer
As the Great Creator had planned
Smoking campfires would dot the landscape
Music would fill the air
Families would eagerly embrace a lifetime
In freedom and in the willingness to share
The animals would wander freely
Amongst grass and trees and flowers
And all the beauty of the wilderness
Would to this day, still be ours
There would be no paths of concrete
Just dirt beneath our feet
The stars, the moon and sunlight
Would make this dream complete
Our pillow would contain moonlight
Our blanket would consist of stars
The dawn would bring sweet music
Imagine, all this once was ours
Pride was taken in the glory of nature
Courage from facing the elements
If we hadn't tried to change the past
We'd never wonder where the beauty went
If the drums had continued beating
And warriors still possessed the land
There would be a forever brotherhood
Where we would evermore walk, hand in hand
Guy Fawkes
Remember, remember, the 5th of November
The Gunpowder
Treason and plot ;
I know of no reason why Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes,
'Twas his intent.
To blow up the King and the Parliament.
Three score barrels of
powder below.
Poor old England to overthrow.
By God's providence
he was catch'd,
With a dark lantern and burning match
Holloa boys, Holloa boys, let the bells ring
Holloa boys, Holloa boys, God save the King!
Hip hip Hoorah !
Hip hip Hoorah !
A penny loaf to feed ol'Pope,
A farthing cheese
to choke him.
A pint of beer to rinse it down,
A faggot of
sticks to burn him.
Burn him in a tub of tar,'
Burn him like
a blazing star.
Burn his body from his head,
Then we'll say:
ol'Pope is dead.
The North Wind Doth Blow
The North wind doth blow and we shall have snow,
And what will poor robin do then, poor thing?
He'll sit in a barn and keep himself warm
and hide his head under his wing, poor thing.
Mistletoe | |
Walter de la Mare (1913) | |
Sitting under the mistletoe (Pale-green, fairy mistletoe), One last candle burning low, All the sleepy dancers gone, Just one candle burning on, Shadows lurking everywhere: Some one came, and kissed me there. Tired I was; my head would go Nodding under the mistletoe (Pale-green, fairy mistletoe), No footsteps came, no voice, but only, Just as I sat there, sleepy, lonely, Stooped in the still and shadowy air Lips unseen—and kissed me there. |
Make It Snow
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
Till, ringing, singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime,
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
Then from each black, accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The Carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
And in despair I bowed my head;
‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said;
‘For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!’
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
‘God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!’
Is for your best year yet,
A year where life is peaceful,
And what you want, you get.
The past year’s memories,
And live your life each new day,
Full of bright expectancies.
With happiness galore;
And when it’s done, I wish you
Happy New Year, and many more.
New Years Party
In the waking minutes of a new year
a fantasy draws near fulfillment
-and is interrupted.
Tonight
I have sat at your feet
and longed, longed to touch you.
I have smiled teasingly into your eyes
and noticed that I held your gaze
for moments that suspended time.
I have taken your hands,
kissed your lips,
wondered about you infinitely-
and at this hour
I am left
wishing desperately
for more time with you,
because now
I can only imagine
what might have happened
and whether I will touch you again.
My New Year's Resolutions
I will not throw the cat out the window
Or put a frog in my sister's bed
I will not tie my brother's shoelaces together
Nor jump from the roof of Dad's shed
I shall remember my aunt's next birthday
And tidy my room once a week
I'll not moan at Mum's cooking (Ugh! fish fingers again!)
Nor give her any more of my cheek.
I will not pick my nose if I can help it
I shall fold up my clothes, comb my hair,
I will say please and thank you (even when I don't mean it)
And never spit or shout or even swear.
I shall write each day in my diary
Try my hardest to be helpful at school
I shall help old ladies cross roads (even if they don't want to)
And when others are rude I'll stay cool.
I'll go to bed with the owls and be up with the larks
And close every door behind me
I shall squeeze from the bottom of every toothpaste tube
And stay where trouble can't find me.
I shall start again, turn over a new leaf,
leave my bad old ways forever
shall I start them this year, or next year
shall I sometime, or .....?
Robert Fisher
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
I set down on the bank.
I tried to think but couldn't,
So I jumped in and sank.
I came up once and hollered!
I came up twice and cried!
If that water hadn't a-been so cold
I might've sunk and died.
But it was Cold in that water! It was cold!
I took the elevator
Sixteen floors above the ground.
I thought about my baby
And thought I would jump down.
I stood there and I hollered!
I stood there and I cried!
If it hadn't a-been so high
I might've jumped and died.
But it was High up there! It was high!
So since I'm still here livin',
I guess I will live on.
I could've died for love--
But for livin' I was born
Though you may hear me holler,
And you may see me cry--
I'll be dogged, sweet baby,
If you gonna see me die.
Life is fine! Fine as wine! Life is fine!
Cherry Blossoms Adrift
Pink petals passing
Scents above so high
Painte porcelain perfection
Blossoms caress the sky
Swaying silent shroud
Suitors strolling by
Pink petals passing
Lover's gentle sigh
Pastel hues falling
Slow fluttering grace
Pink petals passing
Lining streams in lace
Pink petals passing
Smoothest transit by
Soft essence floating
In most subtle lullaby
Inducin springtime slumber
Upon a satin shore
Sailing with the current
Pink petals pass before
His underwear is hanging on the lamp.
His raincoat is there in the overstuffed chair,
And the chair is becoming quite mucky and damp.
His workbook is wedged in the window,
His sweater's been thrown on the floor.
His scarf and one ski are beneath the TV,
And his pants have been carelessly hung on the door.
His books are all jammed in the closet,
His vest has been left in the hall.
A lizard named Ed is asleep in his bed,
And his smelly old sock has been stuck to the wall.
Whosever room this is should be ashamed!
Donald or Robert or Willie or--
Huh? You say it's mine? Oh, dear,
I knew it looked familiar!
Ever serene and fair,
And there is another sunshine,
Though it be darkness there;
Never mind faded forests, Austin,
Never mind silent fields -
Here is a little forest,
Whose leaf is ever green;
Here is a brighter garden,
Where not a frost has been;
In its unfading flowers
I hear the bright bee hum:
Prithee, my brother,
Into my garden come!
If I had to sum up Friendship in one word, it would be Comfort. ~Terri Guillemets
If you don't like something change it; if you can't change it, change the way you think about it. ~Mary Engelbreit
The worth of a book is to be measured by what you can carry away from it. ~James Bryce
You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus. ~Mark Twain
I was trying to daydream, but my mind kept wandering. ~Steven Wright
Fear is not a disease of the body; fear kills the soul. Ghandi
And remember, no matter where you go, there you are.
Confucius
Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest.
Mark Twain
ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL
BUT SOME ANIMALS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS.
Animal Farm
Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day.
Winnie the PoohIf you're in a bad situation, don't worry it'll change. If you're in a good situation, don't worry it'll change. ~John A. Simone, Sr.
The flowers of late winter and early spring occupy places in our hearts well out of proportion to their size. ~Gertrude S. Wister
Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.
- Bishop Desmond Tutu
Optimist: Person who travels on nothing from nowhere to happiness.
- Mark Twain
Education is the best provision for the journey to old age.
- Aristotle
The more I think it over, the more I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people.
- Vincent van Gogh
You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.
- oseveltEleanor Ro
Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.
- John Quincy Adams
When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us.
- Alexander Graham Bell
Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of punishment and the
other by acts of love. Power based on love is a thousand times more
effective and permanent then the one derived from fear of punishment.
There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.
Nelson Mandela
Books
are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most
accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers.
~Charles W. Eliot
History: gossip well told. ~Elbert Hubbard, The Roycroft Dictionary
The miracle is not to fly in the air, or to walk on the water,
but to walk on the earth.
Chinese Proverb
We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together
as fools.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Thanksgiving Day is a jewel, to set in the hearts of honest men; but be careful that you do not take the day, and leave out the gratitude. ~E.P. Powell
I love Thanksgiving turkey. It's the only time in Los Angeles that you see natural breasts. ~Arnold Schwarzenegger
Where there is no imagination there is no horror. ~Arthur Conan Doyle, Sr.
You wouldn't believe
On All Hallow Eve
What lots of fun we can make,
With apples to bob,
And nuts on the hob,
And a ring-and-thimble cake.
~Carolyn Wells
It was one of those perfect English autumnal days which occur more frequently in memory than in life. ~P.D. James
All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion, desire.
Aristotle
A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on.
John F. Kennedy
Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.
Thomas Jefferson
Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws.
Plato
Even Castles made of sand, fall into the sea, eventually.
Jimi Hendrix
A friend is one who has the same enemies as you have.
Abraham Lincoln
America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.
Abraham Lincoln
Liberty cannot be preserved without general knowledge among the people.
John Adams
I'm always amazed that peole take what I say seriously. I don't even take what I am seriously.
David Bowie
Arguments are to be avoided: they are always vulgar and often convincing.
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde
A woman is like a tea bag - you can't tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.
Eleanor Roosevelt
As for accomplishments, I just did what I had to do as things came along.
Eleanor Roosevelt
Fear is the foundation of most governments.
John Adams
Let us tenderly and kindly cherish, therefore, the means of knowledge. Let us dare to read, think, speak, and write.
John Adams
If I had no sense of humor, I would long ago have committed suicide.
Mohandas Gandhi
Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere.
Carl Sagan
The man who has no imagination has no wings.
Muhammad Ali
Time is the longest distance between two places.
Tennessee Williams
A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg.
Samuel Butler
I don't know whether war is an interlude during peace, or peace an interlude during war.
Georges Clemenceau
It is madness for sheep to talk peace with a wolf.
Thomas Fuller
A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet.
Orson Welles
I believe in the imagination. What I cannot see is infinitely more important than what I can see.
Duane Michals
Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.
George S.Patton
Action is the foundational key to all success.
Pablo Picasso
If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Then quit. There's no point in being a damn fool about it.
W. C. Fields
Human beings, who are almost unique in having the
ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for
their apparent disinclination to do so.
Douglas Adams
An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.
Mohandas Gandhi
What is important is not what someone is but what he is waiting for. Not the events of life but its possibilities.
Dorothee Solle
A good word is an easy obligation; but not to speak ill requires only our silence, which costs us nothing.
John Tillotson
Aging is not lost youth but a new stage of opportunity and strength.
Betty Friedan
Being a mother is hard and it wasn't a subject I ever studied.
Ruby Wax
Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful. ~Norman Vincent Peale
Whenever you give someone a present or sing a holiday song, you're helping Santa Claus. To me, that's what Christmas is all about. Helping Santa Claus!
A well spent day brings happy sleep
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci
Christmas is the day that holds all time together. ~Alexander Smith
One kind word can warm three winter months. ~Japanese Proverb
We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher
Music is what feelings sound like. ~Author Unknown
An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves. ~Bill Vaughan
Empty pockets never held anyone back. Only empty heads and empty hearts can do that. ~Norman Vincent Peale
A rich man is nothing but a poor man with money. ~W.C. Fields
Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man. ~Benjamin Franklin
Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
~Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 1850
New Year's Day: Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual. ~Mark Twain
Give thanks for what you are now, and keep fighting for what you want to be tomorrow. ~Fernanda Miramontes-Landeros
Pick battles big enough to matter, small enough to win. ~Jonathan Kozel
There's lots of people in this world who spend so much time watching their health that they haven't the time to enjoy it. ~Josh Billings
If malice or envy were tangible and had a shape, it would be the shape of a boomerang. ~Charley Reese
The only man who is really free is the one who can turn down an invitation to dinner without giving an excuse. ~Jules Renard
When love is not madness, it is not love. ~Pedro Calderon de la Barca
Loving is not just looking at each other, it's looking in the same direction. ~Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Wind, Sand, and Stars, 1939
Every artist dips his brush in his own soul, and paints his own nature into his pictures. ~Henry Ward Beecher
When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. ~Franklin D. Roosevelt
Remember, we all stumble, every one of us. That's why it's a comfort to go hand in hand. ~Emily Kimbrough
Breathing is the greatest pleasure in life. ~Giovanni Papini
You learn something every day if you pay attention. ~Ray LeBlond
Come forth into the light of things, let nature be your teacher.
William Wordsworth
Let the rain kiss you. Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. Let the rain sing you a lullaby.
Langston Hughes
Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without.
Confucius
We have time, there's no big rush.
Jimi Hendrix
Be miserable. Or motivate yourself. Whatever has to be done, it's always your choice.
Wayne Dyer
A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.
Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr
J. P. Morgan
Emil Zatopek
Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall. ~Larry Wilde, The Merry Book of Christmas
A man who is "of sound mind" is one who keeps the inner madman under lock and key. ~Paul Valéry, Mauvaises pensées et autres, 1942
Fifty Shades Freed
Fifty Shades Darker
Fifty Shades of Grey
The Long Earth
The World of Poo
Snuff
Unseen Academicals
The latest in The Disworld series, excellent read, if you like football, it probably won't help.
Witches Abroad
A great Discworld Novel with Granny Weaterwax and Nanny Ogg. Greebo the cat, what a star
The Hobbit
A Classic
The Lord of the Rings
One of the all time Classic's
If Ancient English history is your thing, this is the book for you
Chronicles of Ancient Darkness is a great series, by Michelle Paver
Tom Holt, very funny guy
A good series, worth a read
All Enid Blyton Books are good for kids
My first book
A very interesting series
Avoiding the hype, this is a good book
Great book
Book much better than the film
A very good read
Great read, the clues are hidden in full view
Better than the film
First book for Mr Coop, great read
He started a lot of things
Brilliant
If you liked The Golden Compass, you'll enjoy this
An Interesting Read
John Twelve Hawks is Great
A Very Good Read
Enjoyed it very much
Just loved them
Great Author
A great, great author
Scary
Great books, TV Series not so hot
Mr Holmes
Classic
A good Science fiction novel
I like Ray Bradbury
Very Good
Sad
A kids favourite
Alice in Wonderland
Classic
The Hitch Hikers Guide To The Galaxy
Emma
Jane Eyre
Mothman Prophecies
Message From Nam
Shadowrise
The Catcher In The Rye
The War of the Worlds
Mind Games
Little Women
The Quest
Something Rotten
The Graveyard Book
Moby Dick
The Jungle Book
The Three Musketeers
The Green Mile
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole
May Contain Traces of Magic
A Game of Thrones
The Devil In The White City