Pea and mint soup
Baby gem lettuce
Bubbles in green glass
Christmas hat and boots for new-born
Beautiful jade inlay from India
Lime green bib on beautiful Grand-baby
Monthly Archives: November 2012
Lifted Spirits, Struggling Swans and Fading Beauty
1  For a number of reasons, I was late to singing this morning and as soon as I approached the room and could hear the gorgeous harmonies of “Lo, the Eastern Sages Rise”, one of our glorious carols, my spirits were lifted. Then I joined in and of course, my spirits soared even more along with the music!  Everyone should sing!  I know some of my readers will say, “But I can’t!”  Bear in mind this Zimbabwean proverb –  ‘If you can walk, you can dance and if you can talk, you can sing.’
2 Â It has been a wild, wild day and these elegant swans were doing their best in the rough water but barely moving.
Swans on the Penryn River
3 Â Â I love the fading beauty of these anemones.
Beginning to fade
The veins in this one have become more prominent and the centres have gone blue
HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all my American readers!
Story-teller, Cactus and Moscow City Ballet
1 Â The little story-teller figure is a Pueblo Indian character and is honour of my Dad whose novels are behind the little figure in the photo.
Pueblo story-teller and novels by David Wiseman
2 Â Â The ‘Christmas’ cactus in beautifully in flower already.
‘Christmas’ cactus
3 Â We’ve been to the Hall for Cornwall this evening to see the marvellous Moscow City Ballet performing Romeo and Juliet. It was brilliant!
Moscow City Ballet, Romeo and Juliet
Mandarin Duck, Tiny Cardigan and Pearl Buttons
1 Â This lovely little model of a Mandarin Duck was made by our youngest daughter many, many years ago for her Dad. It has been treasured ever since.
2 Â Â I have finished the tiny cardigan for our Grand-baby due in April. It has some very special buttons on it.
Tiny cardigan, 20 cms from top to bottom
3 Â These buttons are part of a collection that I have inherited. My Grandfather was a button salesman in and around Manchester and these are his sample cards which have been used gradually over the years. It really pleases me to think that the new baby will be wearing a cardigan with buttons belonging to her/his Great Great Grandfather!
Very precious Mother-of-pearl buttons
Beautiful Treasures to Save if the House is About to Explode!
A bit different today! Two nights ago when we had the gas leak but hadn’t called the emergency number yet (Don’t ask me why!) I didn’t sleep but lay awake worrying and making lists in my head.
The first list was What Will I Save If I Have Only A Few Minutes Before The Place Goes Up and the second, less interesting, What Do I Need If We Are Evacuated While Things Get Sorted. I was thinking, as I lay there, of all the people in Cuba, in New York, in Jamaica, in Palestine, in Goma, everywhere where Sandy or some other destructive force, natural or man-made, has been and thinking that they have  faced or are still facing all this for real.
As I lay in bed and ‘walked’ myself around our house, I began to realize that there were only a very few things that I would truly want to save, that were totally irreplaceable.
My first list:
- Mr S. We met about 46 years ago and have been together ever since.
- Photographs – and that means grabbing two small suitcases where all the early photos of our growing-up family are kept and the computer where all the digital photos are stored – memories of family, those still with us and those who have gone and friends, those still with us and those who have gone.
- The Family Bible where so much family history is stored ( have a look here if you missed that post)
- My locket, which has been passed through generations and worn by the Bride in so many family weddings. Â (Have a look here for that post)
- Two small pieces of clothing –    the beautiful christening dress that my Granny was christened in, then my Mum, then me and my little sister… (That post is yet to come)      and the little sweatshirt from the Killingbeck Cardio Thoracic Unit in Leeds that reminds us how lucky we are to have our son, D.
and that really is all. I found that to be such a liberating realisation. The stuff that surrounds us really doesn’t matter. There are pieces of furniture that are family heirlooms, there are pieces of art that I love, there are all my music things, there are many, many books but ………
I wonder what your few treasures might be if those were really all you could save?
D’s sweatshirt
Family christening dress
The Gas Man, Anemone Jewels and Magic Wool
1 A lovely gas man has spent the day with us as he has been tracing the gas leak that we smelt last night. He is building his own Eco house and was fascinating to listen to as we waited for the other gas men to arrive to start digging up the front drive to find the source of the leak. The house is now clear but the men were working until 6.30pm, digging in the dark! They have enjoyed the bacon sandwiches and multiple coffees we made for them.
2 The anemones that friends brought us on Friday night have all opened up and are such beautiful rich colours. They remind me of my Mum who particularly loved anemones.
Jewel like anemones
3 Unable to go out or do much else today, I’ve been knitting and sewing up baby cardigans. I love this magic wool that makes its own pattern as I knit.
Back of new cardigan
Baby hoodie ready to sew up
India Holiday continued – Raja Mahal, Orchha
This palace in Orccha, built in the 16th century by King Rudra Pratap, has the most amazing paintings telling the stories of Rama and Krishna.
The Raja Mahal, with some of the original blue tiles still in place
Blue tile detail
Lots of architectural detail
Beautiful balustrade
Corridor of bite arches
Inner courtyard
About the Raja Mahal
Beautiful paintings from 16th century
Beautiful painting from 16th century 2
Dragon
Violent chopping off of limbs
Lots more holiday photos to come!
Lovers’ Lane, Evening Sky and Green (Weekly photo challenge) and a P.S.
1 Just down the road from us is a path we can take to town, called Lovers’ Lane. That name pleases me.
Lovers’ Lane
2 A beautiful sky tonight.
Evening sky
3 There are so many beautiful shades of green and so many beautiful names for those colours – jade, turquoise, chartreuse, emerald, aquamarine, beryl, pea, olive, malachite, moss, and lime….
Lovers’ Lane
Evening sky
Baby Lupin leaves
Mural of green field and sheep
Under the Gunnera Leaves
Reflections in green water
Turquoise sea
Copper in the rocks
Green field with rabbit and fox
Green produce
Green Giant
A pea stall in Nepal
P.S. I don’t comment on news, politics or religion in this blog (and those who know me know that in real life I do that all the time!) but tonight I just want to say how my heart goes out to all those Egyptian families who have lost a child or maybe more than one in that terrible coach/train accident. I don’t have many readers of my blog in Egypt but I want to send love from one parent to another, to send love and strength for coping with this, to just tell you how my heart aches for you all.
Diamonds, Rhubarb ‘n’ My Nepalese Back-Pack (Daily Prompt)
1 Â Â A very heavy mist dropped diamonds on these furry sage leaves.
Diamond drops on  sage
2  Beautiful Rhubarb with Ginger Fool as tonight’s dessert.
Rhubarb with Ginger Fools
3Â Â Thought today’s Daily Prompt to be an interesting challenge so I have re-written much of this post so that it contains no three letter words. I have also chosen to change my third item today. I recognise that it is much easier to follow this challenge when one’s post is short! Â It still makes writers think hard about their choice of words. Â Â In Pokhara, Nepal, I bought a beautiful back-pack, embroidered in some of my favourite colours which I plan on using to carry stuff to do with my music lessons, choirs as well as piano then I shall be reminded of my holiday three times every week.
Back-pack from Nepal
The Suitcase Singers, Bell Tower and Brandy Snaps
1  Fantastic singing this morning. It’s three years since Claire started this choir and we go from strength to  strength!  I needed a photo today to send to Spotlight Southwest for tomorrow night’s Children in Need show for which last week’s buns made ÂŁ25 in the end. I told the choir that I’d already sent a photo of my buns and that I needed an up-to-date photo of the choir. The place fell apart and I realised what I had said! That’s an Americanism that is pretty new over here!
The Suitcase Singers
Choir baby E
2 Â Driving through Ponsanooth, there were temporary traffic lights so I had the opportunity to take a photo of this very pretty bell tower – and with a bird on top!
Bell tower in Ponsanooth
3 Â We have friends coming to dinner tomorrow evening and I’ve spent the afternoon making Brandy Snaps to go with my Rhubarb and Ginger Fool.
Brandy snaps in the making
Brandy snaps
