LuceStellare

A Walking Song

Upon the hearth the fire is red,
Beneath the roof there is a bed;
But not yet weary are our feet,
Still round the corner we may meet
A sudden tree or standing stone
That none have seen but we alone.
Tree and flower and leaf and grass,
Let them pass! Let them pass!
Hill and water under sky,
Pass them by! Pass them by!

Still round the corner there may wait
A new road or a secret gate,
And though we pass them by today,
Tomorrow we may come this way
And take the hidden paths that run
Towards the Moon or to the Sun.
Apple, thorn, and nut and sloe,
Let them go! Let them go!
Sand and stone and pool and dell,
Fare you well! Fare you well!

Home is behind the world ahead,
And there are many paths to tread
Through shadows to the edge of night,
Until the stars are all alight.
Then world behind and home ahead,
We’ll wander back to home and bed.
Mist and twilight, cloud and shade,
Away shall fade! Away shall fade!
Fire and lamp, and meat and bread,
And then to bed! And then to bed!

Still round the corner there may wait
A new road or a secret gate,
And though I oft have passed them by,
A day will come at last when I
Shall take the hidden paths that run
West of the Moon, East of the Sun.

J.R.R. Tolkien

Blessed Solstice

The winter solstice arrives momentarily. Our old speck of dust in the Milky Way galaxy replies to the tug and pull. Yes, we will roll along to begin the long climb out of the shadows. Yes, we will align with the sun and stars. Yes, we will be reborn.

All the plants and trees are at rest. Squirrels, mice and rabbits scurry for seeds to nibble. Woodpeckers drift up and around the tree limbs looking for one more bug, one more worm, one more morsel to eat. Blessed are the creatures big and small in slumber or in search of today’s meal. Blessed are the birds.

Chimneys blanket the early morning with wood smoke. Frost settles over all. The sun is fierce on the horizon. The rays pierce eyes not ready for its brilliance.

I am here, says the Sun

I will blind you

I will be known in your eyes

I will always return

I am the yang

What comes next? What will be laid to rest? What will be in the New Year? What will be? What will be?

Solemn Rememberance

A most solemn day approaches on November 11, 2018. One hundred years have passed since the agreement was written to end the fighting in Europe. The four years of battle between many nations, fought most vigorously in Belgium and France.

“In Flanders Field the poppies blow, between the crosses, row on row…”

Be humbled by the great loss of life. Of the men who fought and died. The villagers caught in the middle of armies at war. The farms and fields lost to shot and shell. The horses, the brave horses and mules killed as they carried supplies and guns to the battlefield. The farm animals, cows, chickens and goats scattered and frightened by it all. The birds, insects and all life forms in the forest lost.

Remember the Earth. It felt the impact too. The shells that blazed out of guns and cannon for four long years. Look at these old trenches. Think of the men who lived in them for a while, died in them and came out of them shattered forever.

This is what happens when humans cannot resolve conflicts in peaceable voices. This is what remains. So, consider the arrogance of man to say, we are the most evolved animal on earth. Be humble and remember it is 100 years anniversary since the War to end all Wars concluded.

So, what have we learned since then?

In Flanders Fields
BY JOHN MCCRAE

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.