maggie and milly and molly and may

maggie and milly and molly and may
went down to the beach (to play one day)

and maggie discovered a shell that sang
so sweetly she couldn’t remember her troubles,and

milly befriended a stranded star
whose rays five languid fingers were;

and molly was chased by a horrible thing
which raced sideways while blowing bubbles:and

may came home with a smooth round stone
as small as a world and as large as alone.

For whatever we lose(like a you or a me)
it’s always ourselves we find in the sea

- ee cummings

Day Three of Spring Break found us on our way to Anastasia State park, which is in St. Augustine, FL. I would be lying if I said our whole spring break trip wasn't planned around spending a day at the beach. Spending time with old friends? The cherry on top of a ginormous and delicious sundae. We needed to get our toes in the sand and some salt in our hair. (But more on those old friends later.)

The weather was perfect. In the mid-80's, light breeze, beautiful sunlight. The water temp was still on the cool side (59 degrees) but once you were numb it felt great! ;) James played Super Dad and rented a body board and spent hours riding the waves with the girls while I read a book in between wave jumping.










Honestly, I don't see how people can live in land-locked states. I would go crazy.

"...But so many more so happy"

September has come, it is hers
Whose vitality leaps in the autumn,
Whose nature prefers
Trees without leaves and a fire in the fire-place.
So I give her this month and the next
Though the whole of my year should be hers who has
rendered already
So many of its days intolerable or perplexed
But so many more so happy;
Who has left a scent on my life, and left my walls
Dancing over and over with her shadow
Whose hair is twined in all my waterfalls
And all of London littered with remembered kisses.

- Louis MacNeice, Autumn Journal

April is the cruellest month...

...or so T.S. Eliot would have us believe. I prefer to think of it as being puddle-wonderful. At any rate, it's National Poetry Month, which is most certainly a thing of beauty. Over the month I'm going to share some of my favorite poems, and I hope you'll do the same.

First up will be my most favorite poem by my most favorite poet- ee cummings. James gave me a hardback edition of cummings' complete works for Valentine's Day a few years back, and it's just lovely. As is this poem:

i carry your heart
i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)

i fear
no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)