What’s your favorite thing about yourself?
Curiosity, Yeah, I’m naturally curious….about everything.
Edit; I’m considering changing this to Observant.
Curiosity is a wonderful thing, to be interested, stay interested in the world around us. To keep learning. The ‘ Every day’s a school day’ vibe is a good one…but I think Observant pips it to the post ….or maybe a vivid imagination? Nooo, I’ll stop right here. Observant it is.
Across the world luxury is going to mean something different to everyone. A private jet? Or maybe clean drinking water?
But the word FREEDOM begged to be written for my response.
Today I chose to copy a poem by W H Davies, a Welsh poet and wanderer. His book The Autobiography of a Super-tramp is interesting.
At this moment I am sitting on the sofa with the dog asleep at my side. The sky is overcast and it’s blowing a gale. The french windows are securely open wide. The fresh air rushes in and out taking light billowing curtains with it. A blackbird and a few pigeons are finishing up their breakfast and the squirrel is digging up some potted chives to hide his stash- word is squirrels forget where they put 50% of their swag. Who’d have thought it?
I’ll brew fresh coffee now and exercise some remaining grey matter before anything else on my list of ‘ things to do, if I want to’. This my friend is luxury!
Edit; the wind blew away most of the clouds, the dog awoke and went outside to catch some sun…
It has been a long time coming, this kind of peace.
I’ve enjoyed reading what others in my newly-found WordPress family have had to say is their idea of luxury.
Dear Reader, what is yours?
I took one for the team today. Well, for my immediate neighbourhood, anyway. 4.40am and a young family of blackbirds were hungry. Their relentless protests were never going to cease until someone helped the parents sort it
It’s the rent we pay for living in this beautiful world ( however hard man tries to feck it up)!
So, clad in only summer nightwear attire and winter boots….(Yes, dressed in the dark syndrome) I ventured out with my box of tricks.
Dried mealworms went into a shallow dish of water ( to help things along with the little ones) Some cheap mixed seed which seems to thrive and grow amongst the gravel. Old ( but no green spots involved- that’s a killer- one spot of green means the whole batch is shot!) bread rolls I hated. Suet sprinkles, they’ll only eat at a push, a cut up apple, some grapes and a few piles of porridge oats. It took about ten minutes to sort the breakfast banquet and another ten for the madness of the dawn chorus to settle. But they did
I reckon by 5am peace was restored. I climbed back into bed and then the dog showed an interest in going out. Great!
Do you remember your favorite book from childhood?
A favourite series of books of mine were The Famous Five by English writer Enid Blyton ( 1897-1968) Her books were best sellers around the world since the 1930’s.
Leisure
What is this life if, full of care
We have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can,
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
A poor life this, if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
By W.H. Davies, pub 1911.
‘ Time keeps on slipping into the future’ is taken from the album Fly Like an Eagle by the Steve Miller Band. Released in 1976.
List three books that have had an impact on you. Why?
These three books have stayed with me since first reading them a lifetime ago. They would make perfect companions to be reread, should the stranded on a desert island scenario ever occur.
The Prophet by Kalil Gibran ( 1883-1931) This Lebanese/American poet and writer had this work published in 1923. The twenty six philosophical essay/prose poems over twenty eight chapters tell of sprawling topics including life, love, freedom, humanity, pain and passion. A truly spiritual and inspirational read.
Experiments with the Truth, is the autobiography penned by the Indian and London educated lawyer known as Mahatma Gandhi ( 1869-1948). He writes of the successes and failures of non-violent resistance. Suffering hardships and imprisonment for his beliefs. Mr Gandhi who was assassinated in 1948. He never forgot the principles of truth.
A Thousand Years of Solitude was penned by Colombian writer and journalist Gabriel Garcia. Martinez ( (1927-2014). His book covers seven generations of a family as they wade through the inevitable repetition of history in Latin America. The magical realism woven in here with experiences of being a journalist makes this an ideal Tome to have with you on a desert island, as each page is crammed full of detail to absorb and think about for a long time to come afterwards. You may even feel the need to read it over and over to truly capture its essence.
How do you know when it’s time to unplug? What do you do to make it happen?
I’m lucky to have instinct and intuition playing my hand here. It just happens..bam!..unplugged!
What quality do you value most in a friend?
‘ Faithless is he who says farewell when the road darkens’
~ J.R.R. Tolkien 1892-1973
What jobs have you had?…… and when the work is over
The tide rises, the tide falls,
The twilight darkness, the curlew calls;
Along the sea-sands damp and brown
The traveller hastens towards the town,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.
Darkness settles on roofs and walls,
But the sea, the sea in darkness calls;
The little waves, with their soft, white hands,
Efface the footprints in the sand,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.
The morning breaks; the steed in their stalls,
Stamp and neigh, as the holster calls,
The day returns, but never more
Returns the traveller to the shore,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.
***************
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ~ 1807-1882
What does “having it all” mean to you? Is it attainable?
‘Having it all’ must mean something different to everyone. Those who believe it is a myth, those who believe they have attained it and those who want it.
Katy Perry in a Monse designed spacesuit had to leave the planet for 11 minutes to fill a void in her life.
I’ll just go with contentment, being happy and grateful for what I have.
Do you have any collections? I embrace minimalism
William Morris (1834-1896) designer, poet, craftsman, radical socialist, environmental activist. The first eco warrior of design, without a doubt!
He once said ‘ Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful ‘.
Another interesting take, said by Isabel Allende-1942- ‘ You spend the first part of your life collecting things and the second half getting rid of them’………A bit of a generalisation, but you get the drift.
Personally I’m not that comfortable being possessed by possessions.
IN THE BOOMER PIGEON HOLE? 