Tag: Work

The Yellow Brick Road?

~ Christine Goodnough ~ 8 Comments

Here’s my response to Crimson’s Creative Challenge #40. A bit of nonsense maybe, but I had fun imagining where this trail might take a person. 🙂

Can This Be The Yellow Brick Road?

“You need to follow the yellow brick road,” someone told me. “That’s where your dreams will all come true.”

I googled yellow brick road and it brought up an album by Elton John. It appears his dream has come true, but I was actually hoping for a successful career on Wall Street.

So I programmed the navigation system in my car for “yellow brick road” and followed the voice carefully. However, when the synthetic lady told me to head west on County Road #64, a narrow lane, I got a bit nervous. What kind of career awaits me out here in the boonies?

I abandoned the car when the country road morphed into Shady Trail. After a thirty-minute hike I’m seeing a shining path ahead, but it doesn’t look like yellow bricks. Still, I kind of like the peace and quiet here. Perhaps I’ll become a famous naturalist.

There’s a Time to Retire

~ Christine Goodnough ~ 5 Comments

This anecdote was posted on my first blog on June 14, 2012:

Lotte Lehmann became a famous opera singer just before WWI and performed a total of 93 roles in her career.  She retired from the opera in 1951 and became a music teacher for over twenty years.

One day she was visiting with an up-and-coming young soprano who remarked sympathetically that “It must be terrible for a great singer like you to realize you’ve lost your voice.”

“Not at all,” the older lady replied. “It would be terrible indeed if I didn’t realize it.”

To everything there is a season… including a time to quit – before you become an affliction rather than a delight to your audience.

The Dull Road

~ Christine Goodnough ~ Leave a comment

by Edgar Guest

It’s the dull road that leads to the gay road;
the practise that leads to success;
the work road that leads to the play road;
it is trouble that breeds happiness.

It’s the hard work and merciless grinding
that purchases glory and fame;
it’s repeatedly doing, nor minding
the drudgery drear of the game.

It’s the passing up glamor or pleasure
for the sake of the skill we may gain,
and the giving up comfort or leisure
for the joys that we hope to attain.

It’s the hard road of trying and learning,
of toiling, uncheered and alone,
that wins us the prizes worth earning,
and leads us to goals we would own.