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“One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.” ―
In these unimaginable times where so many things are grinding away at our foundations, from where do you draw your inspiration?
What wellspring do you tap to refresh your weary spirit?
Never in my 75 years on earth have I felt more tested, more in need of visiting my wellsprings for replenishment.
What torments the world — torments me.
These are a few of the wellsprings from which I find harmony in this decidedly unharmonious world:
- engaging and edifying books,
- a garden walk through our neighborhood,
- a really great movie,
- great music,
- the visual art in our home,
- time communing in nature,
- writing, writing, writing.
What about you? What refills your cup?
Today, I’m sharing with you where I have turned most recently for inspiration and restoration:
- Poem from William Butler Yeats
- Song from Les Miserables
- Finale from the ballet, Swan Lake
- A Resurrection of sorts
- Number from Singin’ in the Rain
The Second Coming, by William Butler Yeats
To me, The Second Coming has the feeling of a tornado erupting inside of me, when one era of history collides with another. The poem reminds me that the birth process is painful, where one day there will be new life, there first must be death.
💐
Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the center cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: somewhere in the sands of the desert
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.
The darkness drops again; but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
💐
I Dreamed a Dream ~ Les Miserable ~ sung by Ruthie Henshall
Here’s a song from a young woman, Fantene, a victim of the French Revolution who reflects on her young life, her shattered dreams and her feelings of abandonment. It so perfectly captures the heartbreak of life having its way with us.
💐
Swan Lake Finale
Here Siegfried battles the evil sorcerer to save the life of his one true love. His dance explores the titanic struggle between good and evil, a battle that wages within us every day, ever reminding us it is only real love that has the power to liberate our true self.
The Resurrection of Prima Ballerina Marta Cinta González Saldaña
Here is a spine-tingling moment when prima ballerina Marta Cinta Gonzales Saldana awakens from the fog of Alzheimer’s and remembers she is, now and forever, a — dancer. It is an exhilarating example of how what you are can never be taken from you. (Watch until the music is completed — about halfway through the video.)
Singin’ in the Rain ~ Gene Kelly
Singin’ in the Rain shows how happiness can shine through even the darkest and dreariest of times. How my happiness is not determined by anything outside me but everything inside — that if I keep my heart full no matter what’s going on around me, I can find joy.
Feeling Better?
Just A thought…
Pat