The Grasp of Your Hand

The Grasp Of Your Hand

by Rabindranath Tagore

  Let me not pray to be sheltered from dangers,

but to be fearless in facing them.

  Let me not beg for the stilling of my pain, but

for the heart to conquer it.

   Let me not crave in anxious fear to be saved,

but hope for the patience to win my freedom.

   Grant me that I may not be a coward, feeling

Your mercy in my success alone; but let me find

the grasp of Your hand in my failure.

With a Bird in Your Palm

From Elytis, The Eternal Wager

1
That one day you will bite into the new lemon
and release
huge amounts of sun from it.

2
That all currents of the seas
suddenly illumined will reveal you
raising the tempest to the ethical level.

3
That even in death you will again
be like water in the sun
turning chill by instinct.

4
That you will be catechized by the birds
and a foliage of words will clothe you
in Greek so you will seem invincible.

5
That a water drop will culminate
imperceptibly on your eyelashes
beyond the pain and way after the tear.

6
That all the worlds' unsympathy will turn to stone
on which you can sit like a prince
with a docile bird in your palm.

7
That alone at last you will harmonize
slowly with the grandeur
of sunrise and sunset.

July Inspirations

Always inspired. Currently on a French theme. And poetry, of course.

April 1st on June 8th

There are only two or three human stores, 

and they go on repeating themselves 

as if they had never happened before.

-- Willa Cather

Keep in mind that clicking the photo will enlarge it.

Wander Far Away

A lovely discovery by Arthur Rimbaud:
----
Sensation
Through blue summer nights I will pass along paths,
Pricked by wheat, trampling short grass:
Dreaming, I will feel coolness underfoot,
Will let breezes bathe my bare head.
-----
Not a word, not a thought:
Boundless love will surge through my soul,
And I will wander far away, a vagabond
In Nature -- as happily as with a woman.

French Prints of the Future Year 2000

Found these and think they're quite fun. Imagine what was imagined.

Created in 1910, these are French prints of the future, the year 2000!

Flying Firemen

Car Shoes

The Barber

The Avenue of the Opera

A Curiosity

The Electric Train from Paris to Beijing

A Rescue

Speak to the Caretaker

Cyclist Scouts

Phonographic Message

One for Road

Correspondence Cinema

The Tailor

I find my to these from two sources: PaleoFuture and On Paper Wings. Thanks.

Dice Were Cast

A poem by Yannis Ritsos. From Clay.


Clay: 33

He took off
his beautiful mask
and placed it
on the bed.
His face completely
incomprehensible
appeared bloody.
Then the dice were cast.