Isn’t it fine, when the day is done, To rest in the rays of the setting sun, Gently fanned by a western breeze; To list to the hum of the drowsy bees, To gaze at the earth and the skies of blue And know that it all belongs to you?
Isn’t it fine, at the close of day, To scent the breath of the new-mown hay And the mellow sweetness of golden grain, To stroll in the dust down a country lane, To watch the moon rise round and gold, And know that is all is yours to hold?
When all the sounds of the day are stilled, I like to stroll through the fields I’ve tilled Where I’ve laboured with brain and heart and hand To wrest my food from this vibrant land, To gaze at the earth and the sky’s blue dome And to know that it all is mine to own.
Oh, I’m glad that you need no gold to buy The earth or the stars or the friendly sky; The scent of a rose or a night bird’s trill Or the sun sinking slowly behind a hill; Now I am as rich as a man can be For the whole wide world belongs to me!
I’ve tried to find information online about this poet, when and where she lived, etc. I see she, or her descendants, published a book of poems in 1982. Unavailable, says Amazon. I couldn’t find this particular verse online, just in a friend’s Summer ‘Ideals’ magazine from May 1955. I see that if you want a copy, you can order it from Amazon for about $7.
this sad country
bird bath emptied in the night
by a thirsty doe
The prairies are definitely in a dry cycle this year. Most of our “Possibility of thunder showers” forecasts have evaporated and all the sloughs are dry. Since there’s no water lying anywhere near, I’ve been taking pity on the birds in our yard and putting out several basins of water in the back yard for them. It’s been a joy to watch them from my kitchen window, coming and splashing about, as well as dining on hapless insects floating on the surface.
Last week another creature found my water bowls. Early one morning I saw a doe drinking out of the largest basin so I be sure to top it off at dusk every evening. Several mornings now I’ve found it right empty and a number of telltale hoof marks on the ground. Last night I filled it to the brim around 9 pm and there was only a dribble in the bottom this morning.
Our yard light provides another source of nourishment for the birds, too, judging by how many birds are harvesting bugs on the ground below every morning. This morning I saw robins, sparrows, a kingbird and a brown thrasher feasting there.
There are many fires burning in northern forests; I heard of over a hundred burning out of control in BC alone, plus fires in Alberta and northern Sask.. All this week our atmosphere has been hazy with smoke, sometimes it gets rather hard to breathe. Still, I dare not complain when others closer to the fires are in thick smoke every day and many communities have been evacuated because of encroaching infernos. It must seem a daunting, maybe even hopeless, task to fight fires on every hand, but I’m so thankful for those brave souls out there doing that work.
We’re taking a holiday this week, going to a part of our country where rain is plentiful. In fact, there’s rain in the forecast almost every day this week — I just wish we could bring some back with us! Meanwhile, I hope the creatures around our yard can find another source while we’re away.
Blue in the sky and green in the tree and a bird singing anthems of gladness for me, a breeze soft and fair as a little girl’s hair, with nothing that’s ugly or base anywhere. A world that’s swept clean of the doubtful and mean, with nowhere a hint of the care that has been.
I stand at my gate with the sun in my face, and I thank the good Lord for such beauty and grace. Time was, I declare, when the snows drifted there, and those boughs with their blossoms were ugly and bare. Now the sin and the wrong of the cold days and long are lost in life’s splendor of sunshine and song.
God makes it all right in good time, I believe – we doubt when we’re troubled, we doubt when we grieve; like a stark, barren tree looms the wrong which we see. Hurt, anguish and care hide the splendor to be but at last from the pain rises beauty again, and there’s never a bough that has suffered in vain.
Perhaps at the last, ‘neath a lovelier sun, when the anguish and hurt of life’s growing is done, we may rise from our pain showing never a stain of the cares of the years which fell on us like rain. When the soul is set free all the flaws we now see may be lost in the joy of the new life to be.
A wild electrical storm came up at 1 pm this afternoon, just as I was leaving work. Soon after I got home the system settled right above us for about fifteen minutes. Fierce winds and lightning flashes all around, but the ones right over our heads were worrisome. However, we got at least 3 cm of much-needed rain, so we’re thankful. (Our neighbour’s rain gauge showed 1 1/2″ when all was said and done. Nice! ) A friend who lives +/- 40 km north of us got not a drop.
Now here’s a quickly composed verse about the event:
In constant waves the pouring rain
sweeps over the field, the road;
the tree tops thrashed by the onslaught,
spring back, to be bullied down again.
The overshadowing turbulence hurls jagged streaks our way, followed closely – so closely! – by the cannon roars of thunder.
With each boom we shudder, praying neither we nor the trees will be zapped, sizzled or uprooted by the ferocity clamoring above our heads.
We cringe, yet count this not
the malevolence of a foe;
rather we rejoice in the storm
and bless the sheets of driven rain
bringing life to this thirsty land.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yesterday I heard three little warning tinkles that provoked some serious thoughts.
What If…
Yesterday morning Marla, the FlyLady, posted a list of practical things everyone should do to be prepared for an emergency. I went over this list of simple, obvious things like being sure you have at least half a tank of gas in your car, some cash handy, a few essentials in a flight bag.
— If there’s a big exit, such as happens in the US when a hurricane’s about to hit, cars may be bumper-to-bumper on the freeway for awhile, so be prepared. If the power’s out, gas pumps won’t work, so don’t let your tank run so low. In fact, many things won’t work if the power’s out: debit machines, ATMs, etc.
— Plan ahead and have your precious stuff near the door or where you can grab it in your rush to evacuate. Keep all precious documents in a safely deposit box, copies at home, duplicate keys and flash-drives a friend or relative’s home. Etc.
Another tinkle chimed in the news yesterday. After several days of record-breaking heat, topping at 49.6C – which is just over 121 F – a fire started and rapidly destroyed 90% of Lytton, a town in the interior of British Columbia. Horrible! Our sympathies to the folks without homes, and in that terrible heat wave. Thankfully the people of Lytton had enough time to get out. How would it be to have JUST ENOUGH time to jump in the car and go?
The next tinkle came when a friend, in the course of our visit, talked about the possibility of fire. On such a windy day as it was yesterday, which made our outdoors like a blast furnace, fire is a terrifying prospect. In fact, we heard that our son-in-law and grandson, members of the local volunteer Fire Dept, were out fighting a fire about 30 km from here. It’s not hard to imagine fires raging in the northern forests, but we’re not as immune as we’d like to think, either.
I’m not anticipating disaster but these tinkles remind me there are some things I could and should do to be prepared. If the need arose for sudden flight, we’d likely grab our two cats, our cell phones and my purse if we could, and dash for the car. Everything else would stay behind, come what may. So which of our belongings are really precious and what can we do to ensure their safety? For those of us who are pack-rats, these are questions worth pondering.
Delight: A beautiful sunny morning. I saw a hummingbird at our feeder at 7am. Dismay: I’m missing the swallows. Used to be, morning and evening, I’d see a dozen swallows swooping and diving, cleaning our yard of pesky mosquitoes. So far this month I’ve seen two tree swallows and, twice now, a lone barn swallow. Some people regard barn swallows as pests. “Dirty little birds, dropping mud here and there. Wish I didn’t have to clean up their mess.” Never considering how swallows clean up our air, devouring thousands of mosquitoes and other bugs every single day.
Delight: All kinds of birds come to my watering/bathing dishes all day long. Dismay: Can they ever splash, especially the robins! Dishes need refilling several times a day. I don’t mind, actually; the show is worth the effort.
Delight: I’m finally getting another blog post written! Dismay: I’ve lots I’d like to write – and posts I’d like to follow – but I’m having a hard time disciplining myself to get at it.
Delight: Last week I finished different painting projects and varnished half a dozen. They’re ready to go now. Dismay: This new hobby takes time and money. On Friday I left another generous sum at Michael’s for more paint and canvas.
Delight: Someone encouraged me to sell them and even suggested a selling price! Dismay: Perhaps no one will buy them? I’m not a pro, you know.
The same someone reminded me that we have other artistic sorts here who sell stuff and they aren’t PROFESSIONALS, either. Sign makers, candle makers, soap makers, bakers — we all do the best we can and it’s up to buyers if they want what we offer.So I’m encouraged to try.
Delight: Last week I studied online about the art of “paint pouring,” the different methods used, etc. And then I gave it a try! Dismay: For the first picture I used some old Mod Podge I had sitting around as a pouring medium. Not so smart. The picture’s fine, colour-wise, but the texture is like someone sprinkled sand on the canvas.
Delight: On Friday’s trip to the city, I bought some proper pouring medium and a few more canvases. Mixed up some paint, several colours separately in cups, and gave it a try. Actually, I mixed up too much paint, so did a second picture. Dismay: The second picture being an afterthought, I hurriedly mixed up more paint and it wasn’t mixed as carefully as the first cups. So the result had a few lumps.
Delight: Hey, the pictures were okay. The second one, on a 9″ x 11″ canvas, came out looking like six pink flowers spaced out nicely in a beige and turquoise flowerbed. This would have been a perfect illustration of Friday’s RDP prompt: Not a pair. 🙂 Dismay: One important instruction about pour art: When you leave your pictures stand overnight to harden, be sure the surface they’re on is level. Otherwise the picture may shift; paint may flow off the canvas one way or the other and you may see a much different picture in the morning. I could say I spent $25 Friday night to discover that the desk in my sewing room isn’t quite level. My “flowerbed” now looks like a dipsy tulip. Artists, beware!
Delight: I’m not giving up anyway. 🙂 I’m so enthused about my new artistic hobby! Dismay: Much as I’d like to – I can’t spend all day painting. 😉
Delight: My operation was a great success and I’m pretty much back to normal in my activities. Dismay ?: It’s time to catch up on all the housework and pull weeds in the flowerbeds.
Delight: Though the spring was drought-dry and dust was flying, farmers seeded their crops in hope. Now some badly needed rains have come to replenish our land. The seed is germinating and we’re all hopeful again. Dismay: June is half gone already!
