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Tag Archives: John Masefield

Clematis and A Poem

The Clematis in our front garden is amazing. I took the photo from upstairs.Another pleasing poem we shared with Ti on our last visit is also by John Masefield and it has been going round in my head all week. I love the contrasts between the exotic cargoes of the first and second stanzas and the last which are all so dirty and ‘cheap’ but also very valuable.

Cargoes

Quinquireme of Nineveh from distant Ophir,
Rowing home to haven in sunny Palestine,
With a cargo of ivory,
And apes and peacocks,
Sandalwood, cedarwood, and sweet white wine.

Stately Spanish galleon coming from the Isthmus,
Dipping through the Tropics by the palm-green shores,
With a cargo of diamonds,
Emeralds, amythysts,
Topazes, and cinnamon, and gold moidores.

Dirty British coaster with a salt-caked smoke stack,
Butting through the Channel in the mad March days,
With a cargo of Tyne coal,
Road-rails, pig-lead,
Firewood, iron-ware, and cheap tin trays.

2 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on April 30, 2023 in environment, nature, Postaday 2023, Uncategorized

Tags: Cargoes by John Masefield, John Masefield

A Posy and Two Poems

26 Apr

One of the joys of visiting our Dear Friend Ti, is sharing favourite poems and remembering lines together of poems that we both learned by heart many years ago. It will be her 104th birthday in a couple of weeks and she remembers more of the lines than I do. Here is the garden posy that we took for her today and two of the poems we shared and talked about.

Sea Fever by John Masefield

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,
And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking,
And a gray mist on the sea’s face, and a gray dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull’s way and the whale’s way, where the wind’s like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over.

I love this poem and when living in South Yorkshire, has a lovely poster of the poem and the sea in my office.

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

8 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on April 26, 2023 in flowers, garden, photography, Postaday 2023, Uncategorized

Tags: John Masefield, Robert Frost, Sea Fever, The Road Less Travelled

Programme, Posters and A Poem

08 May

Things are coming together for Perthi Kov’s production of ‘Until the Day Break’. Today the programmes were delivered and we collected the posters. Just showing you a little of one for now but when the show is done, I will show you all of them. They have been designed for us by the very talented Anna Oliver of Fresca Marketing using a painting by Sue Hill (programme) and images from St Euny Graveyard.

A little poem today for you:

An Epilogue by John Masefield.

I have seen flowers come in stony places
And kind things done by men with ugly faces,
And the gold cup won by the worst horse at the races,
So I trust, too.