[The fountain in its source]

The fountain in its source

No drought of summer fears;

The farther it pursues its course

The nobler it appears.

But shallow cisterns yield

A scanty short supply;

The morning sees them amply filled,

At evening they are dry.

    --Madame de la Mothe Guion (1648-1717), translated by William Cowper  (1731-1800)

     This poem is not "Christian", per se, but Cowper certainly was.  His work is featured on both of my blogs.  There are links to his amazing life story. Madame Guion was also a fervent Christian, seeking private devotional disciplines.   

     The poem gives an overall sense of a giving, active life being preferable.  The flowing, active fountain which freely gives of itself never has to "worry" about running dry.   The still cisterns, from which people come and take what they want, do have that "concern.

     Cowper ended up living in the vicinity of Olney, England. There he was friends and a joint hymn-writer with John Newton, author of "Amazing Grace."  Though Americans are much more familiar with Newton, Cowper has had more fame in the UK.  (As noted elsewhere, Cowper was the favorite poet of author Jane Austen.)

   

  

Olney still hosts the Cowper and Newton Museum.  On its premises are Cowper's Summer House.  After his death, a book was published about the place.  "Fans" showed up and wrote on its walls, some of which is still visible today.

"Light Shines out of Darkness" (Cowper; with biographical notes)

[Joy & Peace in Believing] (Cowper)

"The [Slave's] Complaint" (Cowper, plus biographical link; Witticisms & Aphorisms Blog)

"I Will Praise the Lord at All Times" (Cowper)

Quotable Cowper (with biographical link; Witticisms & Aphorisms Blog)

Poetry in Motion

 

       Squirrel monkeys move with energy (and seeming joy) through life.  Full-grown monkeys are small enough; the babies are really tiny.  These creatures are my favorite zoo animal, capturing my attention even more than the big, grand and striking animals.  (Generally, I like most zoo exhibits.)  

       These photos are from the Wildlife World Zoo in Phoenix, AZ and the Frank Buck Zoo in Gainesville, TX.  Both of these are private zoos. These seem to more commonly house squirrel monkeys in modern times; it seems the bigger, public zoos often don't bother with these charming little creatures, which are native to the tropical forests of Cental and South America.

       What must things have been like, interacting with monkeys in the Garden of Eden?  What will our interactions with animals be like in heaven? 

Squirrel Monkeys: Oakland Zoo

Spring Arrives

             

For, see, the Winter is past:

Its rain is over and gone away.

The flowers appear in the land;

The time of singing has arrived,

And the voice of the turtledove 

               is heard in our land.

The fig tree gives out her green figs,

And the vines, the tender grapes,

Give a good smell.

--Song of Solomon 2: 11-13a  

   (translated c.m.b., 2024)

Perfect Love

     This is another year that Valentine's Day falls on Ash Wednesday.  A real reminder of the sacrificial love of all the Saint Valentines.  (See also my other blog for some Valentine's thoughts)

The Months

 
January brings the snow,

Makes our feet and fingers glow.

February brings the rain*,

Thaws the frozen lake again.

March brings breezes large and shrill,

Stirs the dancing daffodil.

April brings the primrose sweet,

Scatters daisies at our feet.

May brings flocks of pretty lambs,

Skipping by their fleecy damns.

June brings tulips, lilies, roses,

Fills the children's hands with posies.

Hot July brings cooling showers,

Apricots and gillyflowers**.

August brings the sheaves of corn***,

Then the harvest home is borne.

Warm September brings the fruit,

Sportsmen then begin to shoot.

Fresh October brings the pheasants,

Then to gather nuts is pleasant.

Dull November brings the blast,

Then the leaves are whirling fast.

Chill December brings the sleet*,

Blazing fire and Christmas treat. 

     ---Sara Coleridge (1802-1852)

     English writer Sara Coleridge is most known as the only daughter of Samuel Taylor Coleridge and an editor of his work, particularly after her father and her husband died.  However, she was an author and translator in her own right.

     In the 21st century, a discovery of over 100 of her unpublished poems was made.  A lecturer at University College, London, Dr. Swaab, discovered them in the Coleridge manuscripts and published them in 2007.

*Many places in the northern hemisphere will still snow in December & February. The British Isles, being smallish and surrounded by water, do not always have the conditions for snow.

**Gillyflowers:  most often, another term for "carnations", though the term may be applied to other flowers,

***Corn: old-school, Old World, meant "wheat" (whereas New World "corn" was called some variant of "maize.")

****Though this poem is not overtly religious, Sara was.  She opposed the Oxford Movement (Tractarian Movement), in the 1840s.  The movement led to an Anglican Church that was more "high church" or more similar to Roman Catholicism, as opposed to other protestant ideas present in England.  [Gerard Manly Hopkins, whose work is featured elsewhere in this blog, did approve of the Tractarian Movement.  Eventually he went so far as to formally become Roman Catholic.]

For All the Saints

All Saints Day is November 1st.  It is a day to remember those who have departed the world before us and are in Christ's presence forever.  

My favorite departed saint to remember is my maternal grandmother, whose photos you will find scattered throughout.  In Lutheran thinking (following how the Bible uses the term), all Christians are "saints" because Christ has made us holy by saving us. We don't live it out perfectly (sadly, we often don't live it out well at all), but Christ is the Perfect One, the Holy One who makes us that way in God's eyes. 

For all the saints 

Who from their labors rest,
Who Thee by faith 

Before the world confessed;
Thy name, O Jesus, 

Be forever blest.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

Thou wast their Rock, 

Their Fortress and their Might;
Thou, Lord, their Captain 

In the well-fought fight;
Thou, in the darkness drear, 

Their one true Light.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

O blest communion, 

Fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle, 

They in glory shine;
Yet all are one in Thee, 

For all are Thine.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

But then there breaks 

A still more glorious day:
The saints triumphant 

Rise in bright array;
The King of Glory 

Passes on His way.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

From earth's wide bounds, 

From ocean's farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl 

Streams in the countless host,
in praise of Father, 

Son, and Holy Ghost.
Alleluia, Alleluia!  --William Walsham How, 1864

W.W. How was born in 1823 in England and died in 1897 in Ireland.  He was an Anglican priest who rose to be a bishop.  

Corner of Heaven

 

     Once again, I'm featuring some of the flowers that have grown up in our yard this spring and summer, as well as our pollinating drought-resistant pine.  Some are native to this area and others are not. Enjoy!

California Poppy (also native to AZ)
with some non-native poppies below

                 Snap dragons with African daisies

Poppy with spiderwort [??]

Sweet alyssum; with something from pea family below

Rose, bred for hot environments

Icelandic poppy

Daughter's rendition of Icelandic poppy

Black-eyed Susan, at various stages

An Easter Carol

               

                Spring bursts to-day,
For Christ is risen and all the earth's at play.

                Flash forth, thou Sun,
The rain is over and gone, its work is done.

                Winter is past,
Sweet Spring is come at last, is come at last.

                Bud, Fig and Vine,
Bud, Olive, fat with fruit and oil and wine*.

                Break forth this morn
In roses, thou but yesterday a Thorn**.

                Uplift thy head,
O pure white Lily through the Winter dead.

                Beside your dams
Leap and rejoice, you merry-making Lambs.

                All Herds and Flocks
Rejoice, all Beasts of thickets and of rocks.

                Sing, Creatures, sing,
Angels and Men and Birds and everything.

                All notes of Doves
Fill all our world: this is the time of loves.    

                                                 -Christina G. Rossetti (1830-1894)

  

*Habakkuk chapter 3
**Compares the flowerless rose, all thorns "just yesterday", to the contrast between Good Friday, when the Lord died, to the blossom of His resurrection on Easter.