Down By The Elderberry Trees

Down By The Elderberry Trees

I sit by the elderberry trees in the field at the back of our house.

From my window this morning I watched them wave to me.

Now in mid-autumn the cherry-coloured berries are sought by the birds,as they turn black red with the change of season.

It won’t be long before the crisp cold of winter frames us with frost.

Spring bulbs buried low in readiness of life to come.I sit here wrapped up in my coat, scarf and  boots,pen and paper at the ready.

Dry leaves swirl above the soil,rustling change coming from the valley,branches creak against hill tops turned cold grey,a beauty that is lost to words.For how can one capture,the change of season,the turning over of life,the crazy ever changing, ever steadfast wonder.

Down here by the elderberries,I am hidden from the house, I can be alone,

with just the taste and breath of earth and trees,a wondrous continuance of all things.

I look down at my pen and paper,as light moves within the leaves that barely hang on,

writing in a place I have never written before,and I wonder why.

Thought for the Weekend/Life - Nelson Mandela

Well here's a heavy hitting statement if ever there was one.

A close friend of mine sticks good quotations up around her living space, hoping I imagine all the inspiration will turn into positive thinking and actions.

So I give you these words for digesting over the coming weekend, and lifetime!!!



'Vision without action is merely daydreaming.  Action without vision is passing the time.  But vision with action can change the world.'

- Nelson Mandela

Project Arts Centre - Nighthawks in Aid of Oxfam Ireland

                            
                         

Great night coming up at the Project Arts Centre Temple Bar - Saturday 30th October.  Proceeds to Oxfam Ireland, see details below:

NIGHTHAWKSNighthawks, a monthly arts club, is heading to Project Arts Centre for one special night of music, comedy, poetry and plays, all in aid of Oxfam Ireland.

This full and fabulous night of entertainment includes; music from Fiach and Enda Reilly, plus a special semi-acoustic headline set from Thomas Walsh (Pugwash and one half of The Duckworth Lewis Method), comedy from Damo Clark, Trevor Browne and Totally Wired, poetry from Colm Keegan and Stephen James Smith, and all topped off with a performance of the new short play Should’ve Gone To Lourdes.

Ticket prices include a free copy of Nighthawks – The Second Oxfam EP and all proceeds from the night will go to Oxfam Ireland.

Suitable ages 18+ contains some strong language and reference of a sexual nature.

For bookings log on to http://www.projectartscentre.ie/programme/whats-on/1147-nighthawks-2010

Poetry Bus Poem - Newsflash

N

Commuters were unhappy on the N4 yesterday morning,

stuck in their cars, engines ticking over, minds a blast.

The memory of last night’s vegetation by the telly, a whirl with the lads,

or kids fighting the notion of sleep, looming dangerously high.

Miles of immovable traffic on tarmac with white lines going nowhere,

instruction signs and numbered distances that they have long since tired of.

A form of silent madness hovers, thoughts itching at the far corners of their brains,

believing now, this could be their moment.

As the seconds turn into minutes and the hand brake is pulled reluctantly up,

as the legs becomes semi-paralysed, and the foot eases on the accelerator.

When holding the steering wheel is as pointless as working out how long?

Something long forgotten, a hint or a notion, a daydream takes over.

And they start to remember, when they didn’t have a car,

when they ran or cycled to all everyday places.

And the breeze was their engine and their feet turned the wheel.

When it was okay to be late for everything, except blinking school.

And a character in a TV soap was more important than their parents.

When music filled their soul, instead of their car radio,

and life was for living, in the here and now.

When they too were a person, with hopes, dreams and a future.

And before they even know it, a sort of smile starts to take over,

just a tiny hint at the upper edges of their mouths,

rising to the kind that might be embarrassing,

as they each start to wonder.

Why did life get so complicated?

Why did they forget how good it could feel?

When falling in love was for falling back out again.

And everything was a blast, because it just shagging was.

A cosy feeling takes over.

A long lost sense of self.

And they look all around them, and a belief starts to simmer,

a belief, that if they wanted, they could be that way again.

Cause change is in the detail, never in the substance.

And the person behind the wheel,

is that young boy in the race, or that girl from the ‘under 12 final’,

that both were triumphant.

In the distance a green light holds movement,

and they, like their cars are ready for the go.

So they get into position and the progress is heaven,

Cause the wheels in their mind are in line with their engine.

Newsflash: Commuters got happy on the N4 yesterday morning,

traffic jam turned silver lining,

stuck in their cars,

all minds a blast. 

NEWSFLASH

'Connections' Art Exhibition - Francis Mc Crory

The Van

Through his collection 'Connections', Francis Mc Crory explores people, places and things in our capital city of Dublin, in any number of ways. 

Mc Crory delves into the relationship between the elements that we encounter every day, and very often take for granted.

The Stella Picture Theatre

His collection illustrates derelict buildings, including the 'Stella Cinema', (that in my youth I believed to be 'awfully grand', and which still holds strong memories for me), obscure  Phone Boxes, The Luas, Public Buses down O Connell Street, and Chip Vans by the Sea.


Of all the images in the exhibition, apart from the Stella Cinema that is an iconic building of my childhood, I absolutely loved 'The Van' and 'Midnight Call'. Mc Crory's extraordinary strength of colour and creation of light, combined with the unique accessibility of his work means that what he gives you, is both refreshing and vibrant.







He is unbelievably a mere 27 years of age.  Born in Belfast, he is a fine arts graduate from the University of Ulster.  He has won two awards for 'Best Emerging Artist'.  The Diageo Award in 2006 and the prestigious KPMG Award in 2007.


 
He is certainly one to watch, and his work made my Saturday morning in Dublin, all the better for having the opportunity to see it.

(Exhibition Gormleys Fine Art, 24 South Frederick Street, Dublin)

Busker

Midnight Call

Thought for the Weekend - George Bernard Shaw

 "People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are.  I don't believe in circumstances.  The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want and if they can't find them, make them."

George Bernard Shaw

Juliet Turner & I at the National Concert Hall

Sounds good doesn't it?

Needless to say Juliet was the one on the stage, whilst I was one of the many followers sitting in the audience.

It did my soul good to listen to one of the greatest Irish singer songwriters around.  Juliet played some of the old reliables like, 'Dr Fell' and 'Burn the Black Suit' , as well as some new material from her latest album.  Even if Juliet did not have the most amazing voice, I could just spend the night listening to her lyrics.  Her music is both direct and exciting with a rawness of intensity that enhances her music every time she performs.  She has the uncanny knack of always making you feel that you are listening to something new, vibrant and different.

The sound in the National Concert Hall was great as usual, but there was something about Juliet and her performance that felt truly intimate, almost as if you were just sitting in your own living room or a cosy pub.  Either way, it was a really enjoyable evening. 

At the end of the night, some of us hung on to chat to Juliet, who was signing Cd's after singing her heart out.  But she kept smiling, and displayed her quick witted sense of humour even at a late hour.  Sense of humour enough to get into a picture with yours truly.  I thank the photographer, a great friend of mine who also managed to get a couple of autographs as well!!

Still

Still

The air is filled with the sweat of others. Intensity of form within each brush stroke, guided by hand and heart.  Mixed colours forming connections in the real and the surreal.  No one particularly cares what the model feels. A thing of beauty but a thing all the same.


She holds her pose well, like a nude mannequin might, envying the artists their freedom of creation. Not for the first time she wonders what’s behind each easel.  Part of her there, but only the smallest part. She’s learned this about artists, a model is but a trigger for something so much more.

Outside the streets of Paris seem like another world, people aimlessly drinking coffee at the cafes below. Parisians have such a way about them, akin to their city,holding majesty of place and therefore majesty of thought.

That’s what she loved most about him, his utter belief in being who he was. Which was why in part, she knew he would not look for her today,why she would remain the painter’s model, and nothing more.

In the silent world of artists, a door opens,creaking as old as the lime washed studio walls. She chides herself, whispering not to be foolish, maintaining her stance, motionless, still.

The smell of paint grows strong as heads turn away from her, looking behind to the intruder.

‘Must not cry, must not cry’.

She recalls the two of them before the angry words, wrapped together, intensity of thought mixed with intensity of delight.

Hearing footsteps, she alone, is no longer the art to which the painters craze, and as her stillness breaks, he takes her gently by the hand.

Hint Fiction - Free Competition

Hint Fiction
A story of 25 words or less, yes challenging!!!!

Closing date 11th October 2010.

Inspired by Ernest Hemingway's six-word story - "For sale: baby shoes, never worn."

Hint Fiction is not just a sentence or two taken from a larger work but rather a complete story that hints at something larger.

For entry details and guidelines inclusive of entry form see link. http://www.writingclasses.com/ContestPages/hintfiction.php

Thought for the Weekend - Blaise Pascal

For all those of you who like myself had not heard of Blaise Pascal until today, he was a french mathematician, physicist, inventor, writer and philosopher from the 17th century.

I know the above, basically because I wanted to use a quote of his for one of the characters in my novel (which today has broken the 10K barrier!!!)

Anyhow I was so impressed with Blaise, that I decided to share a couple of his meaningful thoughts with you all, so here they are.

‘Let each of us examine his thoughts.  He will find them entirely occupied with the past and the future.  The present is never our purpose.  The past and the present our means; only the future is our purpose.  And so we never live, but rather hope to live and, since we are always getting ready to be happy, it is inevitable that we never actually are.’ 

He also said, 'Contradiction is not a sign of falsity, nor the lack of contradiction a sign of truth.'
A thought for our politicians and all those analysts that have taken over the airwaves!! I think I am getting to like Blaise!!