Friday, July 01, 2022

Summertime in Poetry and Prose




"A whole summer ahead to cross off
the calendar, day by day."
RAY BRADBURY, Dandelion Wine


It was a fine summer evening when I went for my usual walk. The sun was still high; it had been a hot day. I rounded the bend in the road when I noticed a wonderful scent on the breeze. The trees in the neighbourhood were releasing their woody fragrance as the day cooled. It was a mix of something earthy, something green with hints of berries or herbs or something. I felt that zing of delight. In that brief moment the city disappeared and I was somewhere on a quiet woodsy path where concrete sidewalks and disturbing noises didn't exist. Then... a truck blew by and left diesel in its wake. The lovely scent was gone; I was back on my city street. It's just a tiny pocket of time, but it's these little bits of heaven that get etched forever in our minds, making summertime sing in our hearts.

Sometimes summer's special mood is triggered through our memories. Sometimes we get it through the books we read on our summer holidays. I love it when passages in a book echo the scents and sights and sounds of the summer season. Art and life joining forces, or maybe it's heaven and earth joining forces.

I'm hoping the few lines captured here today will evoke your own summertime bliss. 




"If you have time to open the back door in the morning
while you're drinking your coffee and look at the sky or
hear the chorus the birds offer, you have time for the marvelous.
You may only have a moment before the polite chaos of the day starts,
but that moment can stretch to the horizon."
DIANE ACKERMAN




"A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining,
the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing,
and the lawn mower is broken."
JAMES DENT




"Flowers lead to books, which lead to thinking and not thinking
and then more flowers and music, music. Then many more
flowers and many more books..."
MAIRA KALMAN




"Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass
under the trees on a summer’s day, listening to the
murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the
blue sky, is by no means a waste of time."
JOHN LUBBOCK, "Recreation," The Use of Life, 1894




"One benefit of summer was that each day
we had more light to read by."
JEANNETTE WALLS, The Glass Castle




"Summer afternoon—summer afternoon;
to me those have always been the two most
beautiful words in the English language."
HENRY JAMES




"There shall be eternal summer
in the grateful heart."
CELIA THAXTER, An Island Garden




"The luxury of all summer's sweet sensation
is to be found when one lies at length in the warm, fragrant grass,
soaked with sunshine, aware of regions of blossoming clover
and of a high heaven filled with the hum of innumerous bees."
HARRIET E. PRESCOTT, The Atlantic Monthly, August 1865




"tree-ward eyes do gaze
fragrant breezes feather our face
music from yonder leaves begins
shhh, be hushed! and let day's
agitations be released"
BRENDA @ IT'S A BEAUTIFUL LIFE, 2018



Wishing you a grace-saturated day, and
Happy Canada Day to my fellow Canadians.
Brenda

All images today come from Pixabay:
(daisies) by Jill Wellington
(woman) by Akyurt
(blue tit) by creisi
(wildflowers)by pasja1000
(walking) by Pexels
(flower vase) by Regenwolken0
(afternoon tea) by Simon Delacre
(hydrangea) by MrGajowy3
(clover) by analogicus
(girl) by LuidmilaKot





24 comments:

  1. What a lovely post. I enjoyed reading the quotes and the pictures are so beautiful!

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  2. Lovely nostalgic writing, plus very beautiful photos. Thank you, Brenda

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  3. Thank you so much for this post and the serenity it brings my heart. That quote by Diane Ackerman just reached out and caught me because it aptly describes the scant minutes I spend at my morning window each work day. I will always long for the day when the call of the clock stops intruding on my pre-dawn ritual of gazing up at dark sky dotted and crossed with the diamonds of stars. For now, the quote gives me comfort that even for the barest minutes, I have made time for the marvelous.

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    1. I'm so delighted that Diane's quotation fit what you needed today. Thank you, Caitlynne, for taking the time to leave a note. xo

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  4. Beautiful post. I was reminded of just the other day, I was walking along a woodland path. I stopped and just enjoyed the chorus of birds and I gave thanks for their music.

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    1. Those really are the joy moments in life, aren't they, Ruth!

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  5. As I read these lovely words and see these sweet photos, I am almost convinced that summer is the most wonderful of the seasons! I really dislike heat/humidity (which is what defines summer here in the mid-Atlantic), but I have learned to find joy in what summer offers. Thank you for this inspiration today!

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    1. Cheryl, when I hear about the heat/humidity of areas like where you live, I am grateful for our dry and usually more temperate summer heat. I would be a puddle on the sidewalk trying to navigate your extreme heat days, so I wish you great grace to get through it. And, yes, learning to find joy in whatever good the season offers - that's the secret, isn't it?

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  6. Thank you for this beautiful post. I love your verse at the end! :)

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  7. Hi, our summers are hot, dry and dusty with temps today of 104 degrees but I enjoy my reading and sorting through my collection of journals inside as I can watch the greenness outside...

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    1. Lin, I'm glad you're finding enjoyable occupation as you stay cool indoors.

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  8. I am longing for the cool days of Fall.

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    1. Yvonne, I'm sorry your summers are so unbearable - hope you can stay cool indoors while you wait for Fall.

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  9. Bren, did you write this just for me? You surely must have, it has my name all over it. It is absolutely a gorgeous post. Enjoy these summer days, autumn will be here in a blink.

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    1. Your posts are always an inspiration and salute to beauty, Sandra. I'm glad to return the favour, and I'm so pleased you found your heart in today's offering. xoxox

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  10. Such a beautiful post. I love the Maira Kalman quote. There is so much beauty in this world. Thank you for reminding us to take the time to see and appreciate it. Have you read any of the Viola Shipman books? I think you would enjoy them.

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    1. Ellen, I'm not familiar with Viola Shipman and so have not read anything by her. But now that you've put me onto her work, I'm off to search for it. Thank you!

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  11. A post filled with words and images that evoke the heart of summer is a pleasure to read and savour, Brenda. Thank you. I love the Ackerman and the Kalman quotes. Going through the day with intention is such a great way to see the beauty that is all about us.

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  12. Oh Brenda, You did it again! I love Summer and all of it’s many gifts. I so appreciate that you take the time to find and share so many lovely quotes!! I, too, particularly love the quote regarding that early morning cup of coffee.☺️ Thank you, thankyou!!!!

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  13. I always feel peaceful after reading your blog...Thank you

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  14. This post makes me want to re-read some of those classic novels!

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To My Beautiful Readers,

Some people come into our lives, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never the same. ~ Franz Peter Schubert

Thank you so much for leaving your 'footprint' here in my comment box. I do appreciate you taking a moment to share your thoughts today.

Brenda xo