Memorial Day: Names

(Vietnam Veterans Memorial far left, photo by Jane Heitman Healy 2012)

On a trip to Washington, DC, colleagues and I toured the Mall one evening. School groups' boisterous enthusiasm overflowed in noise at the Lincoln Memorial in spite of signs requesting reverence. At the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, though, they walked by quietly. 

What made the difference? I don't know for sure, but many of them may have had relatives who served in that war. The somber black stone, so grave-like, may have dampened their spirits. But it could be the names, row upon row, making sacrifice real and personal.

(photo by Jane Heitman Healy 2012)

I first saw those names on the Vietnam Traveling Wall, and I was struck then, as I was again seeing the real Wall, that the names represent many ethnic groups, from indigenous North Americans to people whose ancestors emigrated to the U.S. We cannot tell a person's race, religion, socioeconomic status, or IQ. We can only read names of women and men who served our country to preserve liberty and justice for all. Whether in military service or not, we should all strive to make "liberty and justice for all" a reality.

Thank you to all of those who have served or are now serving in the US Armed Forces. I especially remember my dad and father-in-law who served in World War II. I dedicate this post to Charles Rael, who served for over 22 years, primarily in the Middle East.

William Blake Talking to the Angels: Easter & National Poetry Month

(By Lucien Bégule (Photo Thierry Wagner) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons, http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Fourviere_crypte_agneau_pascal.jpg)

William Blake, British artist and poet from 1757-1827, said he talked to the angels from the time he was a youth.  Once he told others that he could "see a tree filled with angels, bright angelic wings bespangling every bough like stars" (Alexander Gilchrist, Life of William Blake: Pictor Ignotus, 2 volumes, London: Macmillan, 1863; enlarged, 1880).

He poured his visions into poetry and art, combining the two into what he called "illuminated writing." The Poetry Foundation describes the process:  "Blake's technique was to produce his text and design on a copper plate with an impervious liquid. The plate was then dipped in acid so that the text and design remained in relief. That plate could be used to print on paper, and the final copy would be then hand colored." 

His poems from Songs of Innocence are often anthologized for school students. They may be easy enough to read, but contain layers of meaning.

For this Easter weekend, I'll feature one of those, which happens to be one of my favorites.

(Public Domain, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Songs_of_Innocence_copy_B_1789_Library_of_Congress_object_29_The_Lamb.jpg)

The Lamb LITTLE lamb, Who made thee? Dost thou know who made thee, Gave thee life, and bid thee feed By the stream and o’er the mead; Gave thee clothing of delight,          Softest clothing woolly bright; Gave thee such a tender voice, Making all the vales rejoice?   Little lamb, Who made thee?   Dost thou know who made thee?         Little lamb, I’ll tell thee: Little lamb, I’ll tell thee: He is callèd by thy name, For he calls himself a Lamb. He is meek and he is mild,         He became a little child. I a child, and thou a lamb, We are callèd by his name.   Little lamb, God bless thee!   Little lamb, God bless thee!

British composer, Sir John Tavener, set Blake's words to this haunting music:

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
    be praise and honor and glory and power,
for ever and ever!” 

(Revelation 5:13)

Fiddle a Happy Tune: National Poetry Month

By John Fowler from Placitas, NM, USA (Apple Blossoms  Uploaded by russavia) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AApple_Blossoms_(4532239974).jpg

I regularly play in children's poet, David L. Harrison's Word of the Month poem challenge. Each month, Harrison posts a word, and anyone is welcome to write and post a poem using that word. This month's word is BLOSSOM, fitting for many places in April, but not here yet!

Here's my attempt:

At the Old-Time Fiddler Competition:

Junior-Junior Division, Round 2

Waiting in the wings

For her turn in Round Two,

She tried not to tap her booted toes

To “Old Joe Clark,”

A classic her main competitor mastered

Technically.

But she knew she’d turned hearts

In Round One

With “Ashokan Farewell”

When a judge dabbed his eyes

With his blue bandana.

Name called, she stepped forward

And announced, “Apple Blossoms,”

Lifted her fiddle and made melody

That could coax a fruit tree to bloom

With sweetness

In time.

Fiddle contests take place across the country with categories for all ages. Here are the Dillion Junior Fiddlers playing "Old Joe Clark:"

and a young champion fiddler playing "Apple Blossoms:"

What kind of tune says "spring" to you?

Hai-KOOL! National Poetry Month

Spring has been slow to arrive where I live, so instead of whining I decided to try writing a couple of haikus about the situation. I am calling them "hai-kools" for the weather they represent. Check out another playful form of haiku on Laura Purdie Salas' blog, where she is writing a riddle-ku a day for National Poetry Month.

Our dog, Watson, is always an inspiration.

wrestling with snowflakes

snapping them out of the air

Watson wins a round.

impending snowstorm

laughs at April calendar.

"Take that, Spring!" it says.

Wind! Happy National Poetry Month

Steve Partridge [CC-BY-SA-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

When you live on the prairie, wind is constant and inevitable. Some days are windier than others, but it's seldom completely still. And when it is, just like caring for toddlers, you'd better watch out.

In early elementary school, I memorized the poem "Who Has Seen the Wind" by Christina Rossetti, and I have recited it many times since. It's one of those poems that is easy to learn and easy for me to relate to.

Since we have just endured a late blizzard with exceedingly strong winds, and April 1 begins the celebration of National Poetry Month, I thought this poem is fitting for today. Read the text here. And take a moment to enjoy the spring breeze here:



What are your favorite weather poems?

Happy National Poetry Month! Happy Spring!

Seeking Answers to Life's Great Questions

(Salazar210 at en.wikipedia [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], from Wikimedia Commons)

"The unexamined life is not worth living," declared Socrates. And most people do spend at least a little time pondering life's great questions.  "What is my purpose in life?" "What is true love?" You know. Those questions.

(By Karora (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons)

I recently read Lorna Landvik's Welcome to the Great Mysterious. Geneva, a Broadway diva, returns home to Minnesota to take care of her thirteen-year-old nephew with Down Syndrome while her sister and brother-in-law take an overseas vacation. In her sister's house, she makes a great find--a box containing The Great Mysterious. Now, it's not too much of a spoiler to tell you what the great mysterious is. It is a scrapbook created by Geneva and her sister when they were kids at their family cabin. Written out of boredom, it bore precious wisdom as they returned to it years later.

(By La Melodie, http://www.flickr.com/photos/melodyyys/6180032531/, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en)

In the Christian calendar, it's Lent, the time before Easter set aside for self-examination. Maybe it's time to create your own Great Mysterious with a group of friends or family, especially in a reunion or retreat setting. On one page, write one of life's big questions. Glue a pocket on that page and put some blank strips of paper in it. Or leave blank slips of paper and a pen near the scrapbook. Then as people wander by, they see the question and write their answer on the paper, and put it in the pocket. Later, around a campfire or coffee table, read the answers and see where the discussion takes you.

(By Brett Jordan, http://www.flickr.com/photos/x1brett/11654753993/,http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en)

What questions would you ask? Whose answers would mean the most to you?

Cozy up to a Good Mystery

(photo by OokamiKasumi, http://ookamikasumi.deviantart.com/art/Fireplace-157530084)

Driving to a work site two hours away in a ground blizzard, I was thankful to reach my destination safely and check into my motel. The lobby fireplace was flanked by wingback chairs and bookshelves. "That looks cozy," I said at the check-in desk.

In my room, I enjoyed another kind of cozy--a mystery novel. The definition of a cozy mystery varies, but it usually includes an amateur female sleuth. Her occupation gives her skills that she uses to solve the mystery. These books are usually set in a small town with the usual small town goings on--but no sex!

My cozy in this case was debut novel Debits and Credits by Lyn Fraser. Fraser used the axiom "write what you know," and fortunately, she knows a lot! As a Texan and Coloradan, a teacher, business woman, hospice chaplain, spiritual writer, and golfer, Fraser gave Grace Edna Edge many of those traits. Grace's occupation is an unusual one--forensic accounting. In this book, Grace snoops into the sudden death of her aunt's friend on behalf of her aunt and the deceased's nephew. As usual in these books, the police are skeptical of Grace's suspicions, but one detective is interested in finding out more--about Grace herself. Fraser populates the book with a gamut of characters from all walks of life to make an interesting story containing laugh-out-loud lines. I hope this is the first of a series.

( By Club-oracle (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons)

True confession: I have to be in a "cozy" mood to enjoy these, as there often seems to be so much "side story" (those small town goings on) that the main action sometimes seems shoved into the background. Other cozies I have liked include the Goldy the Caterer series by Diane Mott Davidson, the Hannah Swenson series by Joanna Fluke, and the Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter by Susan Wittig Albert.

(photo by Mark Larson, http://www.flickr.com/photos/marklarson/6826864102/, Creative Commons)

Full disclosure: Lyn Fraser is a friend who kindly gave me her book for Christmas. Would I have liked the book anyway? Yes, I would! Grace Edge seems to lean more toward the Edge than the Grace, which leads to laughs. She is also smart and unafraid.

What cozies do you like? With or without a fireplace?