How did I miss World Poetry Day?
Here is an absolute gem from Brian Bilston to celebrate.
I love the colour of the anemone blanda.
anemone blanda
Such a lovely surprise today – Our eldest daughter came to visit – work problems last weekend meant she couldn’t be here for Mother’s Day so she’s been here today, brought lunch and cooked dinner. What a treat to have her company for the day.
I only had two eggs so couldn’t make a cake for the volunteers at Roots so I made Choc Chip Cookies instead.
We followed a car with a bumper sticker that made us smile.
Our garden has bloomed in today’s very welcome sunshine.
We’ve had fun with our latest jigsaw, another of the Alchemist series by Eeboo jigsaws.
Late sunbeams landing on the Libertia Grandiflora made it look as if it was on fire.
I was looking for today’s poem in the book ‘A Poet for Every Day of the Year , didn’t fancy today’s but this one from September 25th. Celia, Celia by Adrian Mitchell, made us both laugh out loud so I hope it gives you a smile at least today.
What a fabulous evening we have had at the Lost Gardens of Heligan’s festival, Homecoming. Tonight was the last night and the highlight was an Evening with Dawn French and Sue Hill. First there was a delicious supper in the marquee, lively traditional Cornish music from Dalla Duo and then the hilarious and at times very moving conversation between our lovely neighbour, sculptor and theatre maker, Sue Hill and the comedy actor and writer Dawn French. We all loved it! Enjoy the gallery.
Dalla Duo
Dawn French and Sue Hill
After a fabulous choir session this afternoon, there were many things to make me smile at the garden centre, first a quirky pottery chicken hiding among some plants.
The place was full of bees and I loved this one with its back end so laden with nectar as it gathered more from a rhododendron.
In the middle of the plant area was a splendid bug hotel which reminded me of one of the poems in Simon Armitage’s new book, ‘Dwell’. In Insect Hotel, he imagines the insects writing their comments in the visitors’ book. Here are a few lines. It’s worth finding the whole poem as it will make you too smile. 
A day of sunshine and showers and a rainbow late in the afternoon just as I was feeling a little blue after our daughter had just left. It’s been such a lovely few days. Look carefully and you can just see the reflection of the rainbow. It was brighter in the sky than my camera managed to capture. 
Our garden has really come alive over the last few days of sunshine. I love the yellows and whites at this time of year.
World Poetry Day is celebrated on 21 March, and was declared by UNESCO in 1999, “with the aim of supporting linguistic diversity through poetic expression and increasing the opportunity for endangered languages to be heard”.
I wanted to find a poem today to make readers smile and remembered this one by Billy Collins which delighted me many years ago when we went to his poetry reading. On one of our holidays in France we went on an adventure to find the painting in the gallery only to be told it had gone away for cleaning. I was so disappointed. I really wanted to see Goya’s smile and his remarkable hat.
Candle Hat
In most self-portraits it is the face that dominates:
Cezanne is a pair of eyes swimming in brushstrokes,
Van Gogh stares out of a halo of swirling darkness,
Rembrant looks relieved as if he were taking a breather
from painting The Blinding of Sampson.But in this one Goya stands well back from the mirror
and is seen posed in the clutter of his studio
addressing a canvas tilted back on a tall easel.He appears to be smiling out at us as if he knew
we would be amused by the extraordinary hat on his head
which is fitted around the brim with candle holders,
a device that allowed him to work into the night.You can only wonder what it would be like
to be wearing such a chandelier on your head
as if you were a walking into a dining room or concert hall.But once you see this hat there is no need to read
any biography of Goya or to memorize his dates.To understand Goya you only have to imagine him
lighting the candles one by one, then placing
the hat on his head, ready for a night of work.Imagine him surprising his wife with his new invention,
then laughing like a birthday cake when she saw the glow.Imagine him flickering through the rooms of his house
with all the shadows flying across the walls.Imagine a lost traveler knocking on his door
one dark night in the hill country of Spain.
“Come in, ” he would say, “I was just painting myself,”
as he stood in the doorway holding up the wand of a brush,
illuminated in the blaze of his famous candle hat.
I just love the whole picture painted by the poet so that it all happens in your mind’s eye and you smile and feel the delight of himself and his wife ‘laughing like a birthday cake.’
I’m always hungry after a choir rehearsal and usually choose a toasted Bovril sandwich when I get home. Today when I opened the new jar, there, on the lid, was a smiley face! 
Missed you at singing V – here’s a cheery smile for you.
We’ve been to the Hall for Cornwall this evening to see The Nutcracker by the Mergaliyev Classical Ballet company and what joy that was. I’ve come away feeling proper happy. We loved the live music, watching the musicians almost as much of a treat as watching the ballet. 
I thought you might like to read a little bit of Cornish on the safety curtain at the interval. 
Waiting to pay for parking in Truro afterwards my eye was caught by a shop front. 
In town this morning, we noticed a delightful display with an advert for an exhibition coming soon. 
Love this little wooly lamb in our favourite coffee shop.
Today’s cat was a picture we saw in the back windscreen of the car in front of us at the lights where the wiper is the cat’s tail. This made me smile.
Our Christmas morning walk took us to Porthtowan where we love to watch the crazy Santa swimmers!
Preparing – and a Christmas Tree
Towards the water
In the water!
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