Fall, leaves, fall

By Emily Brontë

Fall, leaves, fall; die, flowers, away;

Lengthen night and shorten day;

Every leaf speaks bliss to me

Fluttering from the autumn tree.

I shall smile when wreaths of snow

Blossom where the rose should grow;

I shall sing when night’s decay

Ushers in a drearier day.

Boo!!!

 

Happy Halloweeeeeeeeen!!!

little pink orchids

"How The Flowers Grow"

This is how the flowers grow:
I have watched them and I know.

First, above the ground is seen
A tiny blade of purest green,
Reaching up and peeping forth
East and west and south and north

Then it shoots up day by day,
Circling in a curious way
Round a blossom, which it keeps
Warm and cozy while it sleeps.

When the sunbeams find their way
To the sleeping bud and say,
"We are children of the sun
Sent to wake thee, little one."

And the leaflet opening wide
Shows the tiny bud inside,
Peeping with half-opened eye
On the bright and sunny sky.

Breezes from the west and south
Lay their kisses on its mouth;
Till the petals all are grown,
And the bud's a flower blown.

This is how the flowers grow:
I have watched them and I know.

Gabriel Setoun

last rays of summer

 Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.

John Lubbock

love is like a precious plant

 

We've got this gift of love, but love is like a precious plant. 

You can't just accept it and leave it in the cupboard or just think it's going to get on by itself. 

You've got to keep watering it. 

You've got to really look after it and nurture it.

John Lennon

take a flower in your hand

When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it's your world for the moment. I want to give that world to someone else. Most people in the city rush around so, they have no time to look at a flower. I want them to see it whether they want to or not.

Georgia O'Keeffe

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blackberry picking

Late August, given heavy rain and sun

For a full week, the blackberries would ripen.
At first, just one, a glossy purple clot
Among others, red, green, hard as a knot.
You ate that first one and its flesh was sweet
Like thickened wine: summer's blood was in it
Leaving stains upon the tongue and lust for
Picking. Then red ones inked up and that hunger
Sent us out with milk cans, pea tins, jam-pots
Where briars scratched and wet grass bleached our boots.
Round hayfields, cornfields and potato-drills
We trekked and picked until the cans were full
Until the tinkling bottom had been covered
With green ones, and on top big dark blobs burned
Like a plate of eyes. Our hands were peppered
With thorn pricks, our palms sticky as Bluebeard's.
We hoarded the fresh berries in the byre.
But when the bath was filled we found a fur,
A rat-grey fungus, glutting on our cache.
The juice was stinking too. Once off the bush
The fruit fermented, the sweet flesh would turn sour.
I always felt like crying. It wasn't fair
That all the lovely canfuls smelt of rot.
Each year I hoped they'd keep, knew they would not.

Seamus Heaney

Goosey, Goosey Gander

 Goosey goosey gander,
Whither shall I wander?
Upstairs and downstairs
And in my lady's chamber.
There I met an old man
Who wouldn't say his prayers,
So I took him by his left leg
And threw him down the stairs

Goosey Goosey Gander is quite a horrid children’s poem at face value, with a goose throwing someone down the stairs. Delving deeper, it’s likely a reference to times of religious intolerance, namely anti-Catholicism in England’s history. Catholic priests were sometimes hidden away in secret chambers in homes, but if found everyone in the residence were severely punished, if not put to death. The theory of it being a reference to those of the Catholic faith is due to the mention of not saying prayers, as typically the prayers of those in the Catholic faith were spoken in Latin at the time. The idea being thrown down the stairs would be a light punishment for anyone found hiding in secret chambers, but any harsher wording of that would be far too heavy for a child’s poem.

 http://www.funlinksdaily.com/10-nursery-rhymes-with-dark-origins/

the spider and the fly

 'Will you walk into my parlour?' said the Spider to the Fly,
''Tis the prettiest parlour that ever did you spy;
The way into my parlour is up a winding stair,
And I have many curious things to show when you are there.'
'Oh no, no,' said the little Fly, 'to ask me is in vain,
For who goes up your winding stair can ne'er come down again.'

'I'm sure you must be weary, dear, with soaring up so high;
Will you rest upon my little bed?' said the Spider to the Fly.
'There are pretty curtains drawn around, the sheets are fine and thin;
And if you like to rest awhile, I'll snugly tuck you in!'
'Oh no, no,' said the little Fly, 'for I've often heard it said,
They never, never wake again, who sleep upon your bed!'

Said the cunning Spider to the Fly, 'Dear friend, what can I do,
To prove the warm affection I've always felt for you?
I have within my pantry good store of all that's nice;
I'm sure you're very welcome--will you please to take a slice?'
'Oh no, no,' said the little Fly, 'kind sir, that cannot be,
I've heard what's in your pantry, and I do not wish to see.'

'Sweet creature,' said the Spider, 'you're witty and you're wise;
How handsome are your gauzy wings, how brilliant are your eyes!
I have a little looking-glass upon my parlour shelf,
If you'll step in a moment, dear, you shall behold yourself.'
'I thank you, gentle sir,' she said, 'for what you're pleased to say,
And bidding you good morning now, I'll call another day.'

The Spider turned him round about, and went into his den,
For well he knew the silly Fly would soon come back again;
So he wove a subtle web, in a little corner sly,
And set his table ready, to dine upon the Fly.
Then he came out to his door again, and merrily did sing:
'Come hither, hither, pretty Fly, with the pearl and silver wing;
Your robes are green and purple--there's a crest upon your head;
Your eyes are like the diamond bright, but mine are dull as lead.'

Alas, alas! how very soon this silly little Fly,
Hearing his wily, flattering words, came slowly flitting by;
With buzzing wings she hung aloft, then near and nearer drew,
Thinking only of her brilliant eyes, and green and purple hue;
Thinking only of her crested head--poor foolish thing! At last,
Up jumped the cunning Spider, and fiercely held her fast.
He dragged her up his winding stair, into his dismal den,
Within his little parlour--but she ne'er came out again!

And now, dear little children who may this story read,
To idle, silly, flattering words, I pray you ne'er give heed:
Unto an evil counselor close heart, and ear, and eye,
And take a lesson from this tale of the Spider and the Fly.

 Mary Howitt

the frog

Be kind and tender to the Frog,
And do not call him names,
As "Slimy skin," or "Polly-wog,"
Or likewise "Ugly James,"
Or "Gap-a-grin," or "Toad-gone-wrong,"
Or "Bill Bandy-knees":
The Frog is justly sensitive
To epithets like these.

No animal will more repay
A treatment kind and fair;
At least so lonely people say
Who keep a frog (and, by the way,
They are extremely rare). 

Hilaire Belloc

The Red Sky

Always keep your mind as bright and clear as the vast sky, 

the great ocean, and the highest peak, empty of all thoughts. 

Always keep your body filled with light and heat. 

Fill yourself with the power of wisdom and enlightenment.

Morihei Ueshiba

sunset & silhouette

Know what you want to do, hold the thought firmly, and do every day what should be done, and every sunset will see you that much nearer the goal. 

     Elbert Hubbard

life in pink - rose coloured glasses

Hold me close and hold me fast
The magic spell you cast
This is la vie en rose

When you kiss me, heaven sighs
And though I close my eyes
I see la vie en rose

When you press me to your heart
I'm in a world apart
A world where roses bloom

And when you speak, angels sing from above
Everyday words seem to turn
Into love songs

Give your heart and soul to me
And life will always be
La vie en rose

Louis Armstrong - La Vie En Rose

spread the sweetness of love

Mama was my greatest teacher, a teacher of compassion, love and fearlessness. 

If love is sweet as a flower, then my mother is that sweet flower of love.
Stevie Wonder

swan lake

And over the pond are sailing
Two swans all white as snow;
Sweet voices mysteriously wailing
Pierce through me as onward they go.
They sail along, and a ringing
Sweet melody rises on high;
And when the swans begin singing,
They presently must die. 

Heinrich Heine, Early Poems

changing times

 

 New thoughts and hopes were whirling through my mind, and all the colours of my life were changing.

Charles Dickens, David Copperfield

beauty of flowers lives forever

 

 If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden.

Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden

buzzy little bumblebee

 The only reason for making a buzzing-noise that I know of is because you're a bee...The only reason for being a bee that I know of is making honey....and the only reason for making honey is so I can eat it.  

Winnie the Pooh in A.A. Milne's 'The House at Pooh Corner'