It has been the roughest of days – rain overflowing from the guttering and streaming down the windows and wild, wild wind, leaves blown hither and thither and strange thumps from outside while things are blown around the yard. So – I give you a wonderful painting by Giuliana Lazzerini evoking the warmth of a summer day.
To The Sky by Giuliana Lazzerini 1998
We met Brian Patten many years ago when in Yorkshire and he signed his book, ‘Love Poems’ for me. This delightful poem is from that collection. I think we all need the ‘safeguard against imagining’ that there is ‘nothing bright or special in the world.’ There is and we need to keep reminding each other of the good, the bright and the special.
The Stolen Orange
When I left I stole an orange
I kept it in my pocket
It felt like a warm planet
Everywhere I went smelt of oranges
Whenever I got into an awkward situation
I’d take out the orange and smell it
And immediately on even dead branches I saw
The lovely and fierce orange blossom
That smells so much of joy
When I went out I stole an orange
It was a safeguard against imagining
There was nothing bright or special in the world
BP
I am a political animal though I don’t often allow that part of my life in here where I search always for the bright and the special. I read today that the following advert aimed at the Christmas market has been banned. I think it has a message that should be shared, irrespective of the company it is advertising so here it is.
https://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/3065937/iceland-blocked-from-airing-palm-oil-christmas-advert
Checking the published post, I find that the verses of Brian Patten’s poem are all squashed together instead of three line verses. I have tried to correct this but WordPress won’t let me.
