Beside the seaside, beside the sea...

As you no doubt all know by now, I love the sea ... so, on that theme, I thought I'd share these poems - they're not by me! - I might have posted them before - sorry if I have! 

Hope you enjoy them x

~~~~

 

Sea Fever

John Masefield

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea's face and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way and the whale's way where the wind's like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.

 

The Sea

JAMES REEVES

The sea is a hungry dog.

Giant and grey.

He rolls on the beach all day.

With his clashing teeth and shaggy jaws

Hour upon hour he gnaws

The rumbling, tumbling stones,

And ‘Bones, bones, bones, bones!’

The giant sea-dog moans,

Licking his greasy paws.

And when the night wind roars

And the moon rocks in the stormy cloud,

He bounds to his feet and snuffs and sniffs,

Shaking his wet sides over the cliffs,

And howls and hollos long and loud.

But on quiet days in May and June,

When even the grasses on the dune

Play no more their reedy tune,

With his head between his paws

He lies on the sandy shores,

                                   

So quiet, so quiet, he scarcely snores.

Pretending....

this photo was taken by Iona

Pretending ...

Sometimes

I feel that if I

Can just keep on

Moving

I'll forget

For a little while

Or pretend that

It didn't

Happen.

I'll pretend that you're still here,

Washing dishes and

Making me marmite toast

And chamomile tea...

But I know I can't really

Fool anyone

- Especially not me.

But sometimes

It's nice to

Pretend....

Denial / disbelief is a common theme in the grieving process - even months after the bereavement we can still be struck by a feeling of disbelief  - it's so hard to believe that this has happened - that our loved one has really gone. Eventually, we reach some sort of acceptance  and we gradually adapt to life without that person ...

The sky at night...

I tend to take more photos of the view from the front window as it (the sea) is much nicer than the view out the back (the back-lane) - but I loved the sky last night out the back, so here is a rare photo from the back window (above)...

Twilight drops her curtain down, and pins it with a star

 ~Lucy Maud Montgomery

waving .. not drowning

Tidal Waves...

Somtimes

The grief

Overwhelms me

So much

I feel like it's

Impossible

To fight.

So I surrender for a while

And let the tidal waves strike.

But I don't give in.

Grief is like the sea - it seems to go on for ever - it sometimes seems like there's no end in sight. Sometimes it comes in waves and waves, but sometimes it's calm and almost soothing, ... Sometimes, I almost forget it's there... sometimes I know that it's there, but it doesn't seem to be too significant. Sometimes, a storm rises up from nowhere, then slides away just as quickly as it arrived... It gives me strength, it puts things in perspective, it lets me see that the storm will pass... It shows me that this is part of the bigger picture ... part of the rythmn of life.... it is character-building... it makes me strong. But I don't have to be strong all of the the time...

The Black Crows...

(no, not the band!)

This is going to be a short little blog - all I have to say is this:

I saw two crows having a bath in a puddle today. It made me smile.

These pics are from today's walk - it's a bit of a gloomy kind of day today.

Maybe that's why it was so nice to have something to smile about...



Thinking too much...

... Sometimes I have so many ideas, words, pictures, thoughts & feelings going round and round in my head, that it's just too much - it can get so overwhelming...

Nowadays, I nearly always carry a pen, notebook & camera with me, and it definitely helps to get some of it out of my head by writing it down on paper...

Sometimes though, the thoughts keep coming, and I have to go out for a walk to try to clear my head. That's just what I did today, but even then, the thoughts wouldn't stop, so I had to sit down on a bench for a while, and write until my mind quietened down...

I took the photos in this post when I was wandering around Tynemouth. I've always loved watching the waves crash over the pier - I remember being taken there often when I was a child - I was never very enthusiastic about walking along the pier, beacuse it was always so cold & windy ... but I was quite disappointed that the gates were locked today, and I had to make do with gazing between metal railings...



Anyway, here are some snippets of what was going round in my head today:

...Sometimes I think I take myself a bit too seriously.

Sometimes I think I take everything too seriously.

Sometimes, I think I think too much.

Sometimes, I seem to get lost in my thoughts.

Sometimes, I think I need to spend less time thinking

And more time being...  

But maybe thinking is being?...

It's late afternoon.

I'm sitting here,

By the pier,

On a bench

In the late October sun.

It feels strangely warm

But, at the same time, cold.

I listen to the roaring sea.

It feels alive;

Real.

I feel alive;

Real.

I watch ships come and go.

I watch people come and go.

'What is their story?'

I wonder.

'How do they feel?'

I feel the wind on my face.

I feel alive

And somehow

Everything makes sense.

But, at the same time,

Nothing does.

How does that feel?

Maybe, I think,

Maybe

It feels real

- Whatever that is ...

It doesn't really make sense, does it?! ... But it doesn't have to! - And that is so liberating!...

The soul, like the moon...

The moon has been especially beautiful these last few days... I seem to feel a lot more creative in the days leading up to a full moon - does anyone else notice this too?

Anyway, I was having a read through one of my poetry books yesterday, and I really liked this one, so I thought I'd share it:

The Soul, like the moon...

The soul, like the moon,

is new, and always new again.

And I have seen the ocean

continuously creating.

Since I scoured my mind

and my body, I too, Lalla,

am new, each moment new.

My teacher told me one thing,

live in the soul.

When that was so,

I began to go naked,

and dance.

by Lal Ded

- you can find out about her here:

http://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/D/DedLal/

and here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lalleshwari

The book I'm reading is: 'Soul Food: Nourishing poems for starved minds'

some rules for life...



This morning I came across something I'd saved to my desktop a while ago - '40 tips for a better life'...

I've no idea where it came from, but I quite like it - it's a good template for living a fulfilling life, so I thought I'd share it - I've tweaked some of it a little bit, and added a little bit here and there.

The photos I've added are from a day out last month.

1. Take a 10-30 minutes walk every day.

2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.

3. Sleep for 7 hours as often as possible.

4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.

5. Play more, draw more, write more & read more.

6. Make time to practice meditation, yoga (and prayer) on a daily basis.

7. Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.

8. Feel the fear and do it anyway!

9. Dream more while you are awake.

10. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.

11. Drink plenty of water.

12. Try to make someone smile each day.

13. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.

14. Forget and let go of issues of the past.

15. Don't have negative thoughts. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

16. Realise that life is a school - you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

17. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.

18. Smile and laugh more.

19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate.

20. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

21. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.


22. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.

23. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

24. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

25. Forgive.

26. Don’t worry about what other people think of you.

27. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

28. Stay in touch.

29. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

30. Envy is a waste of time.

31. Follow your dreams.

32. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up, show up.

33. Do the right thing.

34. Be happy.

35. Each day give something good to others; even if it’s ‘just’ a smile.

36. Don't overdo. Keep your limits.

37. Don’t have regrets.

38. Be true to yourself.

39. Clear out clutter so that energy can flow.

40. At the end of every day, reflect on what has been good – and be grateful for that.

What do you think?

Is there anything else that you'd add to the list?

~~~

je ne regrette rien...

Today has been a lazy kind of day, so I thought I'd do a quick blog so that I've accomplished something ... but I have no regrets about being a bit lazy - sometimes it's good to just step back for a while...

Anway, here are some more haikus I wrote a while ago:

Listening to the clock

Time's slowly slipping away

But where does it go?

~~~

I loved you so much

Even when it turned to hate

But now it's too late.

~~~

Your hand on my face

In a brief stolen moment -

A tender embrace...

~~~

ah, life is so bittersweet, isn't it... ho-hum...

Anyway, getting back to the theme of regrets, I just want to say - make the most of every moment - if there's something you want to do, or say, then do it or say it!

But if you don't, then don't go beating yourself up over it. Life is too short to have regrets.

If you didn't do or say something when you had the chance, maybe you didn't want it enough - if you had wanted it enough, you surely would have done it or said it.

Regardless, we can learn from the experience, and make a point of making the most of future opportunities.

For me, part of the learning process is to write about it - usually in my journal - and to spend a little time reflecting on it - and then I (try to!) let go and move on...

Finally, here's a little video (not by me!)

thicker than water?

'Old as she was, she still missed her daddy sometimes'  
~ Gloria Naylor

xmas 1971 -  me, dad, and my sister...

You knocked on the door

Looking old and dishevelled and
Heavy.
You needed a shave and
Haircut.
You said you missed us.
But you didn't say
'Sorry'.
Maybe you never will.
You walked away with
Shoulders stooped.
I felt sad and
Heavy.
'I miss you too'
I whispered
As you faded out of
View...

(Oct 2010)
~~~~

I had to include a pic with my mum too! 1971. <3

Paul Smith - A Review in Haiku...

Hello... you might want to skip my rambling below, and head straight to the haikus, which are below the rather beautiful photo of Paul...

... It's normally my daughter Iona (above) who blogs about musicians and the like (http://iona-frances.blogspot.com/), but her infectious enthusiam, and constant reciting of snippets of Maximo Park lyrics over the last few years has rubbed off onto me, and I now feel a bit like a teenager myself... which is quite nice, I have to say!

I'm so pleased that this year she has finally managed to not only get to see Maximo Park last month, but she was also able to go to a really special intimate gig last night by Paul Smith, doing some gorgeous songs from his new album 'Margins'. After the year we've had, she so deserved something nice to happen - and I can't help thinking that maybe her dad has been watching over her and somehow played a part in making this happen... or is that me just getting wistful and sentimental? ... Anyway - I digress... 



Last night was absolutely magical - the audience was spellbound and you could probably hear a pin drop in the silence as we stood listening intently, not wanting to miss a moment. It was so special, I feel a bit guilty for including a photo in this blog - it almost feels like a betrayal - but it would seem such a shame for it just to be hidden away in my computer, for my eyes only...

I really wanted to capture the feelings and moments of last night, and sometimes a picture is enough, but sometimes words are needed too. If you were a subscriber to my old blog, you'll know how much I like haikus. I love how they capture a moment in 3 short lines... so I thought it would be nice to summarise the gig in a few separate haikus... So, here's what I came up with - below the photo...

He seemed uncertain

Even a little bit shy.

He melted my heart.

~~~

His elegant hands

Gently caressed guitar strings

Exposing his soul

~~~

His glossy black curls

Tumbled from under his hat

With gypsy-like charm

~~~

Intense and sincere

His voice full of emotion

We listened as one

~~~

Words full of beauty

Revealing fragility

And a tender heart

~~~

His Margins CD (or vinyl) and dreamlike book 'Thinking in Pictures' are availabe now.

If you're local to Tyne and Wear, they are available in RPM in Newcastle, where this lovely experience occurred... Thank you Paul and RPM, and also Rachel Lancaster, who played guitar :-)

Hope...

This is something I wrote yesterday - it never ceases to amaze me how writing things down helps release negative feelings - I especially enjoyed doing the jigsaw exercise afterwards - I just drew jigsaw shapes (some of which seem to have slightly phallic-looking appendages, incidentally, which Freud would no doubt have a field day analysing...) then I just let my pen subconsciously write down words that sprang from nowhere ... or was it really from 'nowhere'?? Anyway, here it is, along with a couple of photos I took today:



Hope...

Fleeting moments

Stand out

In high definition

Against a hazy background

Of a lifetime of memories.

Fragmented snippets of sentences

And words unsaid

Form broken jigsaws

In the back of my mind.

Unuttered feelings rise to the surface

Then sink,

Submerged.

Drowning

In waves of emotions 

Undefined,

And then returning to haunt me

In dreams

That evaporate on waking.

Breaking the spell of the past

And bringing awareness

to the present

Until darkness falls again;

Only to be dissolved by the rising sun

Bringing light

Bringing hope.

 

Rich Tapestry...

Today is National Poetry Day, and the theme is 'Home'. I hadn't realised this earlier today, but funnily enough I was writing about autumn and how the seasonal theme seems to shift subtly; the summertime theme is being outdoors, whereas in autumn we tend to retreat indoors more and life becomes more centred around the home... Although on lovely days like today, there's surely nothing better than to be outdoors enjoying the crisp air and the blazing leaves that are the signature of this season...

Anyway, I'm not sure whether I'll have time today to write anything else, so instead here's something I wrote a while ago. Short and sweet, but nevermind - poems don't have to be long. How does it relate to 'home'? Well, which home, which fireplace, would be complete without a rug??!

Rich Tapestry ...

A single ray of sunlight

On the faded, worn, rug.

What secrets does it hold?

Time for another of my little Creative Challenges now, I think!

Write a little poem on the theme of 'home'
- or 'autumn'
Or share your favourite poem - either by you or one by someone else

One ...

I woke up this morning to the most beautiful sunrise. The sky was on fire - a glowing mix of red, amber and peach.
For how many years has the sun been lighting the sky? How many people have been captivated by sunrises and sunsets over the centuries?
There is such a timelessness about it - I can imagine bronze age man gazing at it, alongside people today - a link between past and present.... It truly is the natural things in life that have the power to take my breath away, make my heart skip, bring tears to my eyes - whether it's the sun rising or setting, the spiritual, spine tingling glow of the moon, the twinkling of a star, or the gentle arch of a rainbow - it is all these things, and more, that really matter.
It is the sharing of the natural wonders of everyday life that bonds us together, spellbound, across continents, time zones and centuries ... Thank you, 'mother nature' ...

This is a poem I wrote a few years ago - sorry if you've seen it before, but I think it ties in with the theme of this blog ...

One

The pheasant's wing

Beats in time

With the Shaman's drum

On the other side

Of the world.

Woodsmoke

Spirals

Up, up and

Away

In the hazy sky

Between two

Worlds.

Worlds apart;

Yet we are all

One...



Silence ...

'Silence' is one of the things I've been thinking about this week, so I decided to write about it, as part of my recent challenge to myself to write something every day. Below is an extract of what I wrote..

What is silence?

Silence is ...

The space between thoughts... the pause between sentences, the moment between a breath in and a breath out... Silence is two pairs of eyes meeting for a split second... it is the moment when the rain stops ... the little bridge of time between being awake and falling asleep. Silence is when the music stops... when the TV is turned off. When guests leave; when the phone stops ringing.

Silence is a Sunday morning when the roads are quiet and no-one is around. Silence is being up early in the morning and late at night. Silence is taking a moonlit walk under the stars - alone with your thoughts. Silence is when the dog stops barking and the ringing car alarm finally grinds to a halt. Silence is when the laughter stops and when the baby stops crying. Silence is when no-one else is home.

Silence is solitude. Silence is necessary for some but uncomfortbe and unwanted for others. In silence is when we can truly connect with ourselves. Silence is within the beating heart and it's when the soul whispers its secrets and wisdom. Do we ever hear? Do we ever listen?

Silence lets us connect with what we are afraid of admitting to ourselves and to anyone else. In silence we can find oursleves. in silence, we can truly listen.

We notice the sounds of life that are normally drowned out by the incessant waves of sound that pound every day of modern life... We can become aware of the sound of a cat's content purr and the whisper of the gentlest breeze. The sound of our every breath in and out - the rise and fall of our chest.

We can hear the song of the bumblebee and the poem of the butterfly's wings. The lullaby of the calm sea and the rustling of autumn leaves falling.

Silence creates awareness. In silence we find truth. But that truth is something we don't always want to hear... maybe because once we know the truth, it becomes our responsibilty...

What does silence mean to you?

Try sitting quietly for a while, and write, paint, or photograph, what comes to mind...