1 I love the way the beautiful white cyclamen fold their delicate petals back and survive despite the cold winds. They are part of my purple, white and green garden honouring the Suffragettes.
White Cyclamen
2 The pretty little Vanilla Flowers are doing well too; they’ve been in flower for months.
Tiny Vanilla Flowers
3 We spoke to J and T today on the phone. J, just four, is sounding so grown-up and T, 20 months, said, “Hello Granny” and “Hello Grand-grand” for the first time!
1 I’ve mentioned before in this post about the beautiful poem, ‘Afterwards’ by Thomas Hardy, that my parents chose together to be read at each of their funerals. My lovely Dad who died 8 years ago today also chose the beautiful voice of Paul Robeson singing The Ballad of Joe Hill to be played for him and every 17th December, I sing the song along with Paul Robeson in honour of my Dad. Do click on the link and listen and sing along too if you’ve a mind to.
I dreamed I saw Joe Hill last night,
Alive as you and me.
Says I, “But Joe, you’re ten years dead”
“I never died” says he, “I never died” says he.
“In Salt Lake, Joe,” says I to him,
him standing by my bed,
“They framed you on a murder charge,”
Says Joe, “But I ain’t dead,” Says Joe, “But I ain’t dead.”
“The Copper Bosses killed you Joe,
they shot you Joe” says I.
“Takes more than guns to kill a man”
Says Joe “I didn’t die.” Says Joe “I didn’t die.”
And standing there as big as life
and smiling with his eyes.
Says Joe, “What they can never kill
went on to organize, went on to organize.”
From San Diego up to Maine,
in every mine and mill,
where workers fight and organise
It’s there you find Joe Hill, it’s there you find Joe Hill!
I dreamed I saw Joe Hill last night,
alive as you and me.
Says I “But Joe, you’re ten years dead”
“I never died” says he, I never died” says he. I never died” says he.
I grew up hearing and loving Paul Robeson’s voice and in the year that my Dad lived in Cornwall before we were able to join him (I was only 6 years old) Mum played ‘Just a Wearyin’ for you’ every evening and it can still bring me to tears as I remember how much I missed my Dad and it’s only now that I realise that she wasn’t playing it for me but for herself. How they must have missed each other that year. They’d already had 5 years apart during the war and now Mum had three of us to look after and a fourth on the way who was born just 10 weeks before we eventually moved to Cornwall and were all together again and living by Pill Creek as I wrote about here.
2 This beautiful thing is a day or two late but we have the CD that our choir, The Ingleheart Singers, have made and it’s good! Copies are now winging their way to Hawaii, to Atlanta, to Munich and to London to my far-flung family
A Celebration of Christmas by The Ingleheart Singers
3 A super rehearsal tonight ready for our gig in Truro Cathedral on Wednesday evening and for our singing at a wedding on Saturday.
Usually all my beautiful things are from the day on which I post but we’ve just had a wonderful weekend away so today’s post covers Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
1 We had a trip up to Plymouth to see the amazing Jools Holland who just raises the spirits of all who are near him! He is so talented, so generous and clearly enjoys making so many people happy. He smiles his way through the whole performance! It was just fabulous to be able to watch his hands on the big screen. To my delight K T Tunstall was his surprise guest. His drummer, Gilson Lavis was just brilliant!We spent the night in a hotel and next day …….
2 We met two of our lovely daughters, M and L, for lunch in a country pub and then went home with L to her new home where the bird life is just amazing. It was very hard to get photos as they were all so busy going back and forth. There were Nuthatches, Blue tits, Willow tits, Great tits, Coal tits, Robins, Siskin, Chaffinches, Bullfinches, Pheasants and Jays.
3 A walk in the nearby woods this morning with L and T and T’s parents and their five Black Labradors was an utter delight.
1 More getting ready for Christmas, Father Christmases all the way up the stairs – but they won’t stay there long once the Grand-babies arrive! They’ll collect them up and take them to their room.
Father Christmases all the way up the stairs
2 I found this delightful mat in Truro a few weeks ago. It is supposed to be a bath mat but it’s in the children’s room.
Father Christmas mat
3 There is a Father Christmas in the bathroom. He’s a hand flannel and J loves him.
Father Christmas hand flannel
1 “If you want to change the world, first you have to change yourself. In fact, just change your heart and it will change the world. Start now, start this second to do good deeds. From the moment you create good deeds your good karma will stay with you.” Sri Sakthi Narayani Amma…
I read this today on a blog about India whose writer had found mybeautfulthings. It made me think about this morning when we visited the Food Bank in Redruth. The beautiful people there are giving up their time to distribute the donated food to those in need. It is certainly not a beautiful thing that this is necessary. It makes me very sad to know of so many in such dire straits and I despair of our Government cutting welfare and making life even harder for many whose life is already hard.
2 The first mince pies are made and the house is full of the smells of Christmas.
First mince pies of 2012
3 It is also full of orangey smells as I have made another batch of marmalade with oranges which were taking up space in the freezer, space I’m going to be needing for the other Christmas food which I am lucky enough to be able to prepare. I’ve dated them with yesterday’s delightful date as that’s when I started the oranges simmering. Yesterday was also my much loved Sister-in-law’s birthday so we will be reminded of her every time we open a new jar. I like that!
1 In order for the furniture restorer to work on the flood damaged desk, I had to empty out the top section very quickly into a box and have today been sorting through it all. I’ve discovered lots of long forgotten treasures, old letters, a Christmas list written by one of our daughters and some old toys…….
Mum’s desk, restored and more beautiful than ever
Inside the desk. I just love all the little compartments and the drawers – and the old, old ink stains.
2 There’s a fabulous collection of dice of all sizes and in different materials. Most of the dice are ordinary 1-6 for board games but there are some others in sets of five with King, Queen, Jack, the Ace of Spades and the 9 of Clubs, Spades, Diamonds or Hearts. I wonder if anyone reading this knows what game they were for?
Dice -but to play which game?
There are some card games including Lexicon and Main Line and there are some tiddlywinks – remember those anyone?
‘Main Line’ the railway card game
Tiddlywinks
There are some small puzzles where the pieces had to be moved around to be in a particular order.
Puzzles, to be ordered correctly. The Football one cost 1/11d
3 I remember this lovely Knitting Nancy! As a little girl I made yards and yards of ‘knitting’ with her and then sewed it into mats of all sizes, coaster size and dinner plate size that everyone was then given for Christmas.
Knitting Nancy
1 Our first heavy frost rimed all the leaves this morning so that even the weed leaves looked beautiful.
Frosted leaves
2 The early morning clouds were so delicately coloured in soft pink and shades of blue with a touch of threatening grey.
Blue, pink and grey in the sky
3 I’ve finished the baby hoodie for next April’s arrival. This one should fit just as the Autumn comes in about September time. I’m stocking up on various sizes! These colourful buttons used to be on cardigans worn by the expectant Mum and her twin brother when they were very little. The elephants were his and the ladybirds, hers.
Baby hoodie to fit at 6 months
1 The Spanish olive oil in its beautiful bottle reflected in the granite work top caught my eye this morning. What a rich and gorgeous colour it is.
Olive oil and a reflection
2 Another Angel from the shop displays in our small town. They were all made by local school children working with local artists in their schools. I love this one, made by Ken.
Ken’s Angel in a shop window
3 Our Choir has sung at the school Concert tonight. It was an absolute delight to see the little ones, only 12 of them, performing their songs and being so pleased with our applause.
1 “Every day one should at least hear one little song, read one good poem, see one fine painting and speak a few sensible words” Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe.
I’ve given you the song in Meme’s blog and here’s a poem that I love followed by a fine painting . Goethe’s own words are the sensible ones for today.
2 Don’t Go Far Off by Pablo Neruda
Don’t go far off, not even for a day, because —
because — I don’t know how to say it: a day is long
and I will be waiting for you, as in an empty station
when the trains are parked off somewhere else, asleep.
Don’t leave me, even for an hour, because
then the little drops of anguish will all run together,
the smoke that roams looking for a home will drift
into me, choking my lost heart.
Oh, may your silhouette never dissolve on the beach;
may your eyelids never flutter into the empty distance.
Don’t leave me for a second, my dearest,
because in that moment you’ll have gone so far
I’ll wander mazily over all the earth, asking,
Will you come back? Will you leave me here, dying?
3 This beautiful water colour by Oliver Bedford LRIBA, BWS, SGA 1902 – 1977 is of Pill Creek which I posted photos of yesterday.
Pill Creek by Oliver Bedford
1 As a teenager, I used to cycle the 5 miles from Truro to Loe Beach to ‘hang out’ with friends. It is a very beautiful place full of lovely memories.
From Loe Beach
Father and son going out fishing, taken into the sun
Launch
Off they go
Abandoned buoys
Reflections
Bladderwrack glowing in the sun
2 We came to Cornwall from Birmingham when I was 6 years old. Pill Creek was my first real view of Cornwall as we were driven to our first home by an old family friend who had met us at the train station. I’m sure you’ll understand why I fell in love with Cornwall!
Pill Creek – my first view of Cornwall when I was 6
Pill Creek from the house
3 The sky as we drove home became more and more golden and was this wonderful colour by the time we arrived.
Tonight’s sky, Carn Brea Castle, Carn Brea Monument, chimneys and telegraph wires
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