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Category Archives: Peace

Glass Work, Golden Leaves and A Poem

I’ve been working on glass all day as it is time for angels to be made. I’m using blue and yellow glass and making Angels for Ukraine. I’ve cut six, filed and cleaned all six, foiled just one and begun to choose the recycled, often given to me by friends, bits of jewellery to decorate them.

A walk on the beach by the sea, on an earring given to me by C.

With recycled beads looking like a sunflower

Beautiful autumnal colours are appearing in the trees.

I found this poem today and it seemed right, being about singing and for peace.

Songs for the People

BY FRANCES ELLEN WATKINS HARPER

Let me make the songs for the people,

Songs for the old and young;

Songs to stir like a battle-cry

Wherever they are sung.

Not for the clashing of sabres,

For carnage nor for strife;

But songs to thrill the hearts of men

With more abundant life.

Let me make the songs for the weary,

   Amid life’s fever and fret,

Till hearts shall relax their tension,

   And careworn brows forget.

Let me sing for little children,

   Before their footsteps stray,

Sweet anthems of love and duty,

   To float o’er life’s highway.

I would sing for the poor and aged,

   When shadows dim their sight;

Of the bright and restful mansions,

   Where there shall be no night.

Our world, so worn and weary,

   Needs music, pure and strong,

To hush the jangle and discords

   Of sorrow, pain, and wrong.

Music to soothe all its sorrow,

Till war and crime shall cease;

And the hearts of men grown tender

Girdle the world with peace.

Apologies to the poet -This poem is in 4 line stanzas and my draft shows the poem in that shape. Somehow, when published it changes shape.

3 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on October 19, 2022 in art, environment, glass, nature, Peace, photography, poetry, Postaday2022

Tags: Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Ukraine

Goodbye, Last Sunflower and A Song

10 Oct

Photo by Danylo, thank you!

Unloading all the luggage from the truck ready to catch the train

Our last Sunflower brought in from the garden

My choir sang ‘Love Will Carry Me’ and I put it here for our Ukrainian friends, their families, their friends and their country.

It’s very quiet at our house tonight. Bunker Cabaret will next be performed on October 14th at The Point in Eastleigh.

P.S. I up-dated yesterday’s post with some photos.

A Poem

27 Sep

Some time ago I found this poem, “First Day of War” by Ludmila Khersonsky, that was published in The New Yorker, and it has come back into my head as we prepare to welcome some young Ukrainians into our home. They are part of a theatre group who will be performing in Redruth at the end of next week. They are from Kyiv and need some rest and recuperation before they get into rehearsals and performances so we are going to show them some of the beauty of Cornwall and of our everyday lives.

3 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on September 27, 2022 in Cornwall, Peace, poetry, Postaday2022, Redruth, The Lost Gardens of Heligan

Tags: "First Day of War", Ludmila Khersonsky, Ukraine

International Day of Peace and Peggy Seeger

21 Sep

September 21st is the United Nations Day of Peace. You can read more about its origins and this year’s theme here.

End racism

One of Peggy Seeger’s songs that I love is, “How I long for Peace.” I sing it loudly in the car and feel every word deeply.

I wish for peace for all of you and those you love, my Dear Readers.

5 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on September 21, 2022 in music, Peace, photography, Postaday2022, singing

Tags: End racism, peace

Eggs, Post Box Topper and A Wish

04 May

Yesterday, friends at choir said they had eggs if we would like them. Fresh eggs? Of course! I had no idea they were so beautiful until I opened the box to put them on the egg rack. The paler ones are the loveliest pale blue that isn’t showing too well..

Regular readers will know how I love the knitted post box toppers that turn up on Facebook from time to time. This time, one turned up on our road! It has been made by Jessica and is an absolute delight – Cup Cake Tea.

For Star Wars fans, “May the 4th be with you.”

3 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on May 4, 2022 in craft, environment, knitting, Peace, photography, Postaday2022, Uncategorized

Tags: Star Wars

Pendennis Castle, Fritillaria and Street Art

30 Mar

Yesterday we met dear friends for breakfast at the Gylly Cafe and going back to the car, caught this view of the castle through the park.

The gorgeous chequerboard Fritillaria Meleagris are coming into bloom.

Still the news is full of the bravery and resistance of the Ukrainians.

2 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on March 30, 2022 in Cornwall, environment, Falmouth, garden, Mural, nature, Peace, photography, Postaday2022, Uncategorized

Tags: Fritillaria Meleagris, Ukraine

Rhododendron, Carrots and A Burger

28 Mar

This creamy rhododendron is enormous!

Sinogrande bloom

Huge leaves

Buying the veg today at our wonderful greengrocer’s in town, theses lovely little carrots caught my eye.

I made Tom Kerrdge’s Mexican Spicy Bean Burgers tonight – delicious but very messy to eat!

Thinking about Ukrainians

2 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on March 28, 2022 in Cornwall, flowers, nature, Peace, photography, Postaday2022, Uncategorized

Tags: Chantanay carrots, sinogrande, Tom Kerridge, Ukraine

Patterns, Swans and Singing for Ukraine

25 Mar

While we waited for the broker who is going to sell our boat for us, I enjoyed looking at the patterns made by the reflections of masts in the water at the quayside.

Wriggly masts in reflection

No cygnets today, just the parents who mate for life.

I haven’t been going to my choir, Suitcase Singers, in Penryn for a number of reasons. Yesterday they recorded this traditional Ukrainian folk song, Zelenje zhyto, zelene transcribed by Natalie Nowyytzki, directed by Claire Ingleheart At times like this, it is so hard to know what to do but we can always sing and use our voices in solidarity.

6 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on March 25, 2022 in environment, Peace, photography, Postaday2022, Uncategorized

Tags: solidarity, Ukraine, Zelenje zhyto zelene

Spring Flowers, Lentil Ragu and Courage

22 Mar

Not usually a fan of pink, I really like these pink tulips with the blue of the muscari.

A couple of days ago when I posted about the delicious lemon cake, JR commented about another of Rachel Roddy’s recipes and I looked it up, Tagliatelle with lentil and mushroom ragu. It also sounded delicious and came with the recommendation from a friend so I made it for this evening – truly scrumptious.

Watch: Ukrainian girl who sang ‘Let It Go’ in a bomb shelter performs national anthem at packed charity concert

6 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on March 22, 2022 in environment, Food, garden, nature, Peace, photography, Postaday2022, Uncategorized

Tags: Rachel Roddy, Ukraine

Spring, Success and A Poem

21 Mar

It’s officially Spring and all over Cornwall there are swathes of shades of yellow, both primroses and gorse in the hedgerows and hundreds of daffodils lining the sides of the roads. It is glorious and our route to Truro today was a pleasure.

Primroses, my favourite flowers

Celandine

Narcissi

Yellow gorse and blue sky for Ukraine

The lovely Mr S saw his surgeon today, seven weeks after his knee replacement surgery. All declared a success. The hard work on exercises is paying off.

It is World Poetry Day today so I give you today’s poem from my book, A Poet For Every Day Of The Year. I was a big fan of flower fairies as a child.