Month: July 2016

From Murder in the Cathedral by T S Eliot

The last temptation is the greatest treason:
To do the right deed for the wrong reason.

Spoken by Thomas A Becket to his murderers who suggest he lets them kill him so he will be a martyr.

The pain and value of knowing we do wrong

 

I have been  wondering why the term sin has almost died out in our language and I think  for many of us who were brought up in a very strict version of Christianity it became too painful to think about it.We were made to feel ashamed  of our failures so much so that we abandon the whole idea of sin.We don’t know as children that it is very difficult to live without making mistakes and our emotions run away with us so that we hurt other children….But now looking at the world as it is,maybe it would be better of more adults admitted making dreadful mistakes.And we know  free will may not be as free as we think.But if we accept we do sin then it makes us more tolerant of others around us…If we were perfect it might make us self righteous and judgemental which to me seems a perversion of religion.Yet this is happening  in the world today.

The three hardest acts

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
I feel this is important now,that we don’t see the people who voted the “wrong ” way
as bad,evil,unforgiveable.The only obvious thing is how can people not find out what the EU is until after they vote to leave it?I believe it was really a vote of no confidence in the government..But we all have to live together and also we need to stop the new increase in racism and how people feel they can say anything at all.

Politeness,punctation,division

Politeness is considered archaic
Old men, in their suits, and ties say it
Distinctions are  made,
So life can be played.
And while we live let us not be prosaic..

Punctuation  fills a similar need
Sentences ,syntax ,they plead
Of course we may  lose it
Which, generally, proves it.
Or  sentences  anaemically bleed.

When visitors call   for their tea
Then fruitcake divided  shall be.
We share what we  love
As sun shines from above.
Then five thousand shall eat,we shall see,

Archaic

archaic
ɑːˈkeɪɪk/
adjective
adjective: archaic
  1. very old or old-fashioned.
    “prisons are run on archaic methods”
    Elderly-Peoplesynonyms: obsolete, obsolescent, out of date, anachronistic, old-fashioned, outmoded, behind the times,bygone, antiquated, antique, superannuated, antediluvian, past its prime, having seen better days, olde worlde, old-fangled; More
    antonyms:blogs-9-funny-indian-road-signs new, modern
    • (of a word or a style of language) no longer in everyday use but sometimes used to impart an old-fashioned flavour.
      “a term with a rather archaic ring to it”
    • of an early period of art or culture, especially the 7th–6th centuries BC in Greece.
      “the archaic temple at Corinth”
Origin
mid 19th century: from French archaïque, from Greek arkhaikos, from arkhaios, from arkhē ‘beginning’.

Strange

strange
streɪn(d)ʒ/
adjective
adjective: strange; comparative adjective: stranger; superlative adjective: strangest
  1. 1.
    unusual or surprising; difficult to understand or explain.
    “children have some strange ideas”
    Cameron defends Kelly in school row
    Leader of the Conservative party David Cameron listens to constituents of Reading East talking about the cost of living, in Cafe Giardino, in the Oracle shopping centre, Reading.

    synonyms:

    		 unusual, odd, curious, peculiar, funny, bizarre, weird, uncanny, queer, unexpected,unfamiliar, abnormal, atypical, anomalous, untypical, different, out of the ordinary, out of the way, extraordinary, remarkable, puzzling, mystifying, mysterious, perplexing, baffling,unaccountable, inexplicable, incongruous, uncommon, irregular, singular, deviant, aberrant,freak, freakish, surreal; More
    antonyms: ordinary, usual, normal, conventional
  2. 2.
    not previously visited, seen, or encountered; unfamiliar or alien.
    “she was lost in a strange country”
    synonyms:920mini-08 unfamiliar, unknown, new, alien, previously unencountered

    “when children visit a strange house, they are often a little shy”
    antonyms: familiar
    • archaic
      unaccustomed to or unfamiliar with.
      “I am strange to the work”
  3. 3.
    PHYSICS
    (of a subatomic particle) having a non-zero value for strangeness.
Origin
Middle English: shortening of Old French estrange, from Latin extraneus ‘external, strange’.

Appearances, both natural and contrived  

How gently,sweetly softly flowers pose,
Carnation,orchid ,daffodil and rose.
For their intricate petals form a shield
Yet bees with striped force shall make them yield.
Appearances,both natural and contrived,
Mixed with the wiles of human nature thrive.
As knowing not, we pluck the apple rare
And bite its flesh,with teeth we have to bare.
We too deceive the innocent who pass
Not seeing watchers hid behind the glass.
The windows break,the deep earth quakes;
Seized is the maiden ,he  her virtue takes.
Beneath the surface,force and fierceness thrive.
What fearsome, burning God enjoys our lives?

I am no longer

I heard your voice outside the glass front door
I  felt no shock nor worry  nor surprise.
But there a man, whose image is a blur,
Handed me a box with friendly cry.

What part of me still waits for your return?
Why don’t I know you’re gone and shan’t come home?
What  knowledge must my  puzzled heart still learn?
Why do I get an urge to search and roam?

If we are conversations ,as I read,
Then our  exchange has ended with your death;
And so I  am not she with whom you laid.
Nor she with whom you shared a common breath.

When deprived of  hearing your response.
I   am no longer she whom I was once.

 

The foibles of her friends made Mary think

CmnBlueDamsels2016.jpg

 

Alfred wished his wife would make a cake.
He himself could never boil or bake.
Yet  when Marie bought cakes in Marks
His eyes gave out fierce orange sparks.
I thought their marriage was at risk
And so I undertook my task.
I bought a needle circular
And now I knit round cakes for her

 

Wilfred wanted clean sheets every night
The laundry basket was  a wearing sight
Yet when Annette rang the launderette
He swore right through the alphabet.
I thought that they might well split up
Then dear Annette would lose her grip.
I bought some lovely plastic sheets
And on his bed they look quite neat.

Herbert like to use real handkerchiefs
And also he wore heavy cotton briefs.
When Mary Jane  boiled all his stuff
He said  his  pants weren’t clean enough.
I thought their union’d perish soon
And she’d not find another groom.
I  bought ten  gross of  paper pants
And now he feels quite exultant.

Gilbert  liked his  tea  to be  real hot
But one Sunday his troubled wife forgot
He screamed and yelled  like  an infant
His  face was  red and petulant
I thought Diane would  strike him dead
And have nobody in her bed.
I bought ten insulated mugs,
A teapot, and by Jove they’re snug

These little tales are meant to make you laugh
For I would rather read or draw a graph.
But if we do not help our friends
We’d go much further round the bend.
I don’t want you to suffer long
So I’ll come round and sing my songs.
I’ve got my handbag and my case
And now I’m coming ,full of grace.