oh spring! | Kansas City, MO 2010
Poetry lends itself to nature — its subtlety, simplicity, and attention to detail exemplify the visual it describes — so, it’s not surprising to find that many spring quotes come from poems of spring or that poets can’t help but put their pen to paper in homage to spring.
Oh to experience what Langston Hughes captured so well: I stuck my head out the window this morning and spring kissed me bang in the face.
crocus & hyacinth in my garden | Kansas City, KS 2013
crocus & hyacinth in my garden | Kansas City, KS 2013
In the Midwest, spring rarely lines up with the calendar. I was thrilled when my crocus came up this year and weren’t thwarted even after their tender buds were buried twice under a pile of snow. My hyacinths and tulips started their upward climb through the dirt and have thus far survived the temperatures dropping back down to winter-levels. Even though the forecast of snow this week makes me grumble a bit, just seeing their green leaves sticking out reminds me that winter will not last forever – spring is coming.
To gird up my outlook, I went in search of spring quotes and thought I’d share a few that seem fitting for this early stage of the season — the barely hinted at spring.
A friend of mine owns an estate sale business and every month I get to work a sale or two with him. Normally what this means is I sit behind the cash table and watch other people buy the things I missed or was hoping would still be there later in the day. But every once in a while, I go home with treasures. And more often than not, they’re books. (Big surprise.)
I didn’t realise it until this last sale, but one of the great things about estate sale books is that it’s not uncommon to find an inscription in them. And sometimes a mediocre book can suddenly look interesting when there’s a good inscription that sets the book in the context of life.
Lent at Jacob's Well | Kansas City, MO 2012
Lent at Jacob’s Well | Kansas City, MO 2012
Oh the strange, dark mystery that is Ash Wednesday — “the dreamcrossed twilight between birth and dying” as T.S. Eliot so aptly describes in his poem simply titled, Ash Wednesday.
Just wanted to share a few of his lines that particularly struck me.
Seriously — no name calling here; just appreciating funny-sounding words with intriguing back stories. Like I mentioned last {word wednesday}, two of the synonyms for milksop caught my funny bone: namby-pamby and milquetoast. I ended up checking their definitions and discovered they were more than just synonyms for milksop — each word had its own backstory.
Starting with the second oldest word first, namby-pamby was born in the mind of 18th century writer Henry Carey when he wrote a poem in 1725 ridiculing the verse (and politics) of Ambrose Philips. Carey formed the word to rhyme with the first syllable of his target’s name.
Harrington Books | London 2012
Today’s additions are from my home sweet Kansas and my other land — England. Don’t miss last week’s start of the list.
Eighth Day Books - Wichita, KS (2838 E. Douglas Avenue)
I grew up in Wichita, but somehow never knew about this fantastic bookstore until last January. A book-filled delightfully cozy house with shelves lined with old and new books — I loved it from the moment I stepped in the doors. My mom even bought me this gem (which I still need to read!):
Visby, Sweden 2012
Visby, Sweden 2012
I recently stumbled on the British comedy Rev. and have been appreciating its raw humour and honesty regarding relationships both human-to-human and human-to-God. If that wasn’t enough, it also introduced me to a lovely poem by Louis MacNeice in Season 1 Episode 4. Thank you, Vicar.
unknown bookshop | Munich, Germany 2007
There’s nothing quite like a good bookstore — especially one full of used books. I definitely enjoy finding an unexpected bargain book in a thriftstore or at an estate sale, but to be completely surrounded by lovely old books is even better.
I’ve been travelling abroad since 2001, but only in the past few years did it cross my mind to shop for books on my trips, and to note the sweet bookshops I found. Sadly, there are many shops I failed to find or stop in, though I have a smattering of photos (like the one above) reminding me of places I liked the look of, but didn’t buy from or note their address.
3 Kensington Court Gardens, Kensington, W8 5QE
3 Kensington Court Gardens, Kensington, W8 5QE
My favourite stop on my London literary blue plaque tour was the final home of T.S. Eliot. I wish it hadn’t been our last day, and that it wasn’t cold and a bit rainy, because I could’ve soaked in the neighbourhood a bit more. It wasn’t particularly quaint or anything, but it fascinated me to think Eliot lived here while writing his Four Quartets; and this was his final home.
Reading classic books can sometimes be daunting. One way to “dip your toe in” is by starting with short classics. Here are three well-loved books, each 100-ish pages or less, for your consideration:
Interestingly enough, I just noticed that Four Quartets and The Little Prince were published in 1943 and Letters to a Young Poet was published in 1934. I wonder if many people read both Eliot and Saint-Exupéry that year and if so, how the two together affected their outlook…especially in a world overrun with war. Hrm.
