I sit beside the fire and think
of all that I have seen,
of meadow-flowers and butterflies
in summers that have been;
Of yellow leaves and gossamer
in autumns that there were,
with morning mist and silver sun
and wind upon my hair.
I sit beside the fire and think
of how the world will be
when winter comes without a spring
that I shall ever see.
For still there are so many things
that I have never seen:
in every wood in every spring
there is a different green.
~ J. R. R. Tolkien
(The Fellowship of the Ring)
Lovely poem with inspiring and thoughtful remembrances.
Thank you, Peggy!
Beautiful poem and art. Simply the reality of it all
Thank you, Ally!
Great combo and fitting for the season … and an excellent reflection of the cyclic flow of seasons.
Thank you, Frank! And yet, there are many things we have never seen…
Thinking of all the different colors of green, and the sweetness of sitting by a fireplace. Summer feels a long way away, but those greens will soon be dreaming their way from wee seeds after we rest and renew for a few months.
There are so many shades of green… When we went to Ireland in February three years ago I was astonished to find many more shades of green, even in the winter there. And of course here we have our own evergreens, somehow reassuring us that the seasons keep turning.
I read the poem without first checking who wrote it … and was surprised to see it was Tolkien. Who knew? He’s right, of course. There are about a billion different shades of green (probably why it’s my favorite color!)
It seems Tolkien wrote lots of poetry which I’m only starting to delve into. I think my favorite line is “For still there are so many things that I have never seen.” Although blue is my favorite color, green is a close second favorite. 🙂 So many pleasing shades of both of them.
Enjoyed the poem.
Thank you, Liz! 💕
I thoroughly enjoyed this moving combination of Tolkien’s poem and Modigliani’s painting, Barbara. Yesterday I was doing a very mundane task for several hours and it got me thinking about so many things in my past that I haven’t thought of in years. This poem and painting captured this human thought process so well. Always a pleasure to be here, my friend.
I’m happy you enjoyed the combo, Jet. It’s amazing how those mundane tasks can free our minds to contemplate and meditate — I’ve been finding that cleaning up the kitchen every night has turned into a spiritual practice for me since the pandemic began. Things that I have seen on my walks in the woods and by the water keep coming into my awareness and bringing me peace. Thanks so much for your thoughts, my friend.
I always like how nicely you pair artwork with poetry Barbara – this is still another example of how you have done this.
Thank you, Linda. I get a lot of pleasure out of searching for pictures and words that compliment each other. 🙂
I enjoy those posts as well as your nature posts. I did get down to the River yesterday after all. I told myself I’d take the compact digital and go down to take pics of the ice on the frozen Detroit River. If one person was there, I’d leave or go away from the pavilion. I was the only one there, then a young photographer came along as I was ready to leave. He had a camera with a lens as long as my arm. It is a popular spot for eagles to come to Mud Island and fish from the ice … but only one juvenile eagle and too far for his lens to capture. I’m done going now for 2022. It’s only for about six weeks they do that, the heart of Winter.
I have seen some of those very long lenses some photographers use. I wish they weren’t so expensive as I fantasize about the pictures I might be able to get, but, they’d be too cumbersome and heavy for me to lug around on a long walk. I think wildlife photographers spend more time waiting in place than those of us who are mostly out to get our bodies moving. 😉 I guess it depends on what we want to “focus” on.
I have included a glimpse of the photographer in two of the photos in tomorrow’s as he was looking for eagles. In the past down at this pavilion, I’ve shown the photographers with the tripods looking for eagles. I didn’t see an eagle, just seagulls, through my lens. The photographer had a strap and was carrying the camera and lens to his side. I’ve seen the shoulder harness straps that look like a back brace for those very large lenses. I could not believe the prices of them either … I’d be afraid to use them, lest I fall or scratch them. I’ll leave that up to the pros.
I’ve seen those shoulder harness straps sometimes. We carry a tripod in the car which I’ve only used a few times, especially when trying to photograph the moon at night. Handling all the metal equipment in the winter must be challenging. My camera feels like an ice cube. Nature photographers particularly must endure all kinds of inconveniences!
This is beautiful. Thank you.
Thank you, Julie. I’m happy you stopped by. 🙂