there were those nights
we sat in your alcove
drinking wine drinking tea
eating watermelon apple slices
nibbling on Italian cookies cake
after a late show
at the Lincoln Plaza Cinema
talking of books
we were reading
of the upcoming season
at Carnegie Hall
of an aria
sung by Renée Fleming
there was the food
you packed for me
to take home
and that sadness lingering
as I left
of what almost was
and never would be
again
Month: August 2018
Presented to Wang Lun by Li Po
Li Po on board, ready to push off,
suddenly heard the tramping and singing on the bank.
Peach Flower Pool a thousand feet deep
is shallower than the love of Wang Lun who sees me off.
translated by Burton Watson
Thinking of East Mountain by Li Po
It’s been so long since I headed for East Mountain—
how many times have the roses bloomed?
White clouds have scattered themselves away—
and this bright moon—whose house is it setting on?
translated by Burton Watson
“We must build bridges between people, and we must also build walls: the walls of new kitchens, new schools, new…
from Douglas Moore’s Art of Quotation
“We need to keep this country great by continuing its long tradition of being inclusive, of fighting the forces of exclusion that threaten us every day.
We must build bridges between people, and we must also build walls: the walls of new kitchens, new schools, new hospitals.
If we continue to be inclusive and welcoming, we are only going to keep moving it forward, to make the America we all dream of.”
José Andrés, chef, Spanish, American
“Writing is an escape from a world that crowds me. I like being alone in a room. It’s almost a form of meditation- an investigation of my own life.”
from Douglas Moore’s Art of Quotation: RIP Neil Simon and thanks for making us all laugh
“Writing is an escape from a world that crowds me. I like being alone in a room. It’s almost a form of meditation- an investigation of my own life.”
surroundings
pictures on the walls
a tiny metal dinosaur
a boy scout mug
a dog’s ashes
a cat asleep
a bowl of almonds
a glass of whiskey
a novel in progress
a book of poetry
a lamp burning
Today’s Quote
from the blog Soul Gatherings
The place to improve the world
is first in one’s heart and head and hands,
and then work outward from there.
~ Robert M. Pirsig ~
__________
Spring Night in Lo-yang–Hearing a Flute by Li Po
In what house, the jade flute that sends these dark notes drifting,
scattering on the spring wind that fills Lo-yang?
Tonight if we should hear the willow-breaking song,
who could help but long for the gardens of home?
translated by Burton Watson
note: people break off willow wands to give as gifts when parting.
“Everything hangs on how we define ourselves and how we treat those with whom we share our surroundings…”
from Douglas Moore’s Art of Quotation
“Everything hangs on how we define ourselves and how we treat those with whom we share our surroundings,
which are teeming with different ethnicities, religions and cultures. We are doomed if we lose independent thinking, lose the ability to freely evaluate and define ourselves”
Source: The Question We Must Keep Asking (We can only define ourselves by continually re-evaluating our humanness)
Ai Weiwei, artist, activist, painter, sculptor, installation artist, conceptual artist
“This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before”
from Douglas Moore’S Art of Quotation
“This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before.”
Leonard Bernstein, composer, conductor, educator
Leonard Durso 