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Tag Archives: Philip Larkin

Kindness, Daffodil and A Poem

Doing some sorting today, I came across a scrap of paper with a quotation I had saved.

If you haven’t read The Essex Serpent, do. It is a fascinating story and very beautifully written.

One of our Daffodils was broken off by the wild winds so I brought it indoors.

The words above are from a very moving poem by Philip Larkin, reminding us all to be kind.

The Mower

The mower stalled, twice; kneeling, I found

A hedgehog jammed up against the blades,

Killed. It had been in the long grass.

I had seen it before, and even fed it, once.

Now I had mauled its unobtrusive world

Unmendably. Burial was no help:

Next morning I got up and it did not.

The first day after a death, the new absence

Is always the same; we should be careful

Of each other, we should be kind

While there is still time.

2 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on February 16, 2020 in nature, Photography, poetry, Postaday2020, Uncategorized

Tags: Philip Larkin, Sarah Perry, The Essex Serpent, The Mower

Raindrops, Beuret and A Poem

20 Mar

I am always entranced by raindrops on leaves and flowers. This leaf is particularly beautiful. Do zoom in to see the best version.

Raindrops

My bEUret arrived today ready for Saturday’s March.

bEUret

Today is the International Day of Happiness and the Spring Equinox. Let’s all be happy that Spring is on her way. BBC Radio 4 have been playing readings of Spring poems all day and I particularly liked The Trees by Philip Larkin, read by Alex Jennings.

The Trees by Philip Larkin

The trees are coming into leaf
Like something almost being said;
The recent buds relax and spread,
Their greenness is a kind of grief.

Is it that they are born again
And we grow old? No, they die too,
Their yearly trick of looking new
Is written down in rings of grain.

Yet still the unresting castles thresh
In fullgrown thickness every May.
Last year is dead, they seem to say,
Begin afresh, afresh, afresh.

3 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on March 20, 2019 in Beauty, nature, Photography, poetry, Postaday 2019, Uncategorized

Tags: bEUret, Philip Larkin, The Trees

Marigolds, Cistus and Poem

09 Jun

1 In our bedroom at Bolanken Barn there was a beautiful green glass containing rich orange Marigolds .The colour combination was beautiful.

Marigolds

2 Coming home this morning, the Cistus in the front garden is suddenly in flower, covered all over with poached eggs.

Cistus

3 The final three lines of The Mower by Philip Larkin are an important reminder to us all.

The Mower

The mower stalled, twice; kneeling, I found
A hedgehog jammed up against the blades,
Killed. It had been in the long grass.

I had seen it before, and even fed it, once.
Now I had mauled its unobtrusive world
Unmendably. Burial was no help:

Next morning I got up and it did not.
The first day after a death, the new absence
Is always the same; we should be careful

Of each other, we should be kind
While there is still time.

BY PHILIP LARKIN

PS I added the photos to last Saturday’s post.