Category Archives: This and That

Daily Life, Out and About, photograph, This and That

Still Moments

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Along with all the preparation to travel, so many details to attend to, I took the opportunity to spend a moment or two doing nothing. That was yesterday. Today its Heathrow and I’m taking another opportunity to do not very much. Well writing this of course – and also gorping out of the window at the hustle and bustle.

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Worlds apart one might think. But in a certain way of thinking – there is no gap. Come sit and travel with me. Oddly there is more time/space to write here when ‘on the road’.

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Sit and be at ease, where ever your sitting place is.

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Curiosities, Daily Life, This and That

Contemplating Pop Culture and Spiritual Content

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Spiritual Pop Culture Analyzing Spiritual Themes in Pop Culture Well I am still amazed Jademountains is listed in the Blogroll of this website. OMG just seen that the tag line to the blogroll entry reads ‘Beautifully written’! Blimey, and many thanks. There’s a lot of interesting content in this site for those who have had anything to do with pop culture – ever.

Here’s an older post from February 2013 Oscar Spirituality: Rebels, History Revisionists, Relationship Neurosis and Spiritual Battles but doesn’t suffer for that. I’ve seen a number of the films and wouldn’t mind watching them all over again.

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Daily Life, This and That

Time passes. Listen. Time passes

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The stars were out and twinkling last evening as we walked back from meditation. It was if seeing the array for the first time with all the questions a child would ask when first discovering the vastness of space. Discovering anew, thank goodness that is possible. If the sense of wonder goes out of life and living things may well have taken a downward turn.

I could see the lights in the windows of all the other houses on our hill and hear the music rising from them up the long, steady falling night. I turned the gas down, I got into bed. I said some words to the close and holy darkness, and then I slept.

From A Child’s Christmas in Wales – Dylan Thomas

Back in 2005 I quoted the last line of this famous poem in a post.The dark last night was a ‘close and holy darkness’. For some people looking up into the night sky is a spiritual experience, a touching of the infinite and I can relate to that. Last night I could anyway. So if you are out and about this evening waiting for the year to turn into another one take a look, look up and appreciate the cosmos. In spiritual terms, that which is without edges. Us Earthlings are but a spec are we not.

Attached to that 2005 post is a comment left by the now late Iain Robinson. I’ve copied it below for interest and for remembrance of him. Three year gone come this July.

Iain on December 26, 2005 at 6:02 pm said:
A long time ago I used to have a lot to do with Swansea and would regularly pass Dylan Thomas’ parent’s home in the Uplands. That was the house he was remembering in “A Child’s Christmas in Wales”

I knew a lady in the town who at seventeen had been very actively ‘courted’ by Dylan. She worked in the local depot of W.H. Smith Wholesale and he used to hang out at Ralph’s bookshop across the road. Her dad warned her “Don’t ever let me catch you talking to that bad boy!” Another path not chosen there …

One of Dylan Thomas’ lines from the introduction to ‘Under Milk Wood is the quotation I’m using on the title page of my thesis

“Time passes. Listen. Time passes”

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photograph, This and That

Be Not Afraid – Noli timere

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'big dark blobs burned Like a plate of eyes...'
‘big dark blobs burned Like a plate of eyes…’

I guess everybody knows that Seamus Heaney died about a week ago in late August, at the start of the blackberry season. This photograph is a tribute to him and his poem Blackberry Picking. He was quite the person.

His son Michael revealed at the funeral mass that his father’s final words, “Noli timere” (Latin: “Do not be afraid”), were texted to his wife, Marie, minutes before he died. He was quite the person alright.

Who would have thought canfuls and glutting were actual words and how about ingurgitating! Not that anybody around here eats like that. All in all quite the person – with words and as himself.

Now then, what happened to the book of his poems I was sent?

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Daily Life, Out and About, This and That

Birth, Old Age, Disease and Death

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There never seems to be lack of opportunities for talking about old age, disease and death. They are all around and with that birth/life, an endless cycle. Down at the river more baby ducklings. Ten the other day scooting across the surface of the water, today six. Were the other four up-river or down the otters gullet! They do say there is an otter abroad in these parts. Something so charming about otters. If you like ’em here’s one caught on camera on Shetland.

Lee over at Future Health 2020 has gone into remission after six months of chemo having been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma almost six months ago. I’d mentioned Lee’s positive outlook to his health situation in a post titled Sustained Intention back in April.

Dave of Holding no bough has been pondering on the ‘black dog’. Depression it is said is anger spread thin. Anyway he invited his ‘demon’ to tea and over stayed his welcome somewhat but not without providing some interesting insights. I believe we come out of unity in order that the very unity of which we are might see itself. Nice one Dave.

As you might guess from recent posts I’ve been thinking about death for a reason. When Somebody Dies, just published on Field of Merit site, has me talking about the death process and meditation. It is a merit post.

A good monastic friend turns the big seven o tomorrow and every good wish and congratulations to him. Seventy is no age at all when once it would have been old age.

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