From Another Planet

Do you ever speak some language from another planet?

       This Hafiz quote makes me think about one of my favorites books, The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.
        It is a complex story about many lessons we must learn in life, but the greatest of these is the lesson the one revealed through the prince’s love for his rose.  The prince leaves his planet because of the rose; the rose permeates the prince’s discussions with the narrator on Earth when he crash landed in the desert; and eventually, the rose becomes the reason the prince wants to return to his planet. At first, the narrator exclaims that fixing his engine is more serious than listening to the prince’s stories about whether the sheep the narrator has drawn for him will eat his beloved rose. The Little Prince begs the narrator to consider the "seriousness" of one loving a flower "of which just one example exists among all the millions and millions of stars". For if the sheep ate the flower, "then for him it’s as if, suddenly, all the stars went out. And that isn’t important?" The Little Prince truly loves the rose, and as the story progresses, the narrator begins to understand this.
      The Little Prince's own understanding is magnified when he met the fox (the character that provides the iconic quote of this novella) on Earth, "Here is my secret. It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. . . It’s the time that you spent with your rose that makes your rose so important. . . People have forgotten this truth,” the fox said, “But you mustn’t forget it." 
     At the end, the narrator finally does understand that the greatest privilege of this world is investing time in loving another. He concludes "Look up at the sky. Ask yourself, “Has the sheep eaten the flower or not?” And you’ll see how everything changes. . ."

The Little Prince Drawing Number One 

(Those who have read the book will understand 

the significance of this first drawing). 

Like A Sunrise

What would happen if all the splendor of the world took over your body and rose from it like a sunrise? 

     It would be quite amazing if everyone had to bask in your radiance (of spirit, not look), and like the sun, you were the force that sustained existence. We all harbor our own sunrises inside, which can be likened to the fire in our hearts that eventually is brought forth on the day we embrace our true brilliance. What brings that fire out will be different for everyone; the important thing, as Vincent van Gogh says, is not to miss it: "There may be a great fire in our soul, yet no one ever comes to warm himself at it, and the passers-by see only a wisp of smoke.”
   
    Surround yourself with people who want to kindle that fire, preferably before dawn.
"We each have a special something, our small inner flame. Find someone who cherishes that flame, nurtures it, and one day, holds it as a torch to light their own way." - Haruki Murakami

The Starry Night (1889), Vincent van Gogh 

A Child In Dance

A father's toes lifting a child's in dance caused God to pull out a drum.

     Today my family went to see the Broadway production of Les Mis for my dad's birthday. Happy Birthday, Dad! <3
      Les Misérables is now the world’s longest-running musical, seen by over 65 million people in 42 countries. It is an epic tale of broken dreams, passionate love, heartfelt redemption, powerful revolution, and above all, a timeless testament to the survival of the human spirit.

      Victor Hugo, author of this enthralling novel, said: “Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.” Maybe that's why humans have always liked music, it seems to be our personal soundtrack to envision the inconceivable. Maybe that's why we gravitate towards shows like Les Mis with such fervent appreciation of the art before us. Quoting Dumbledore in Harry Potter, “Ah, music," he said, wiping his eyes. "A magic beyond all we do here.” Les Mis was magical, a huge shout-out to the cast, crew, and musicians in NYC today!
       My dad wanted me to include the following story, and I'm glad he suggested it, because it is both related and interesting! About three years ago I applied for a customized license plate, listing my first choice as 24601 (Jean Valjean's prison identification number). I received a letter from New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission stating: "The license plate you requested has been denied. Reason: The license plate is capable of serving as incitation to violence."
      Les Mis has provided me with many laughs, tears, and memories; I will undoubtedly see it again!

Les Misérables Finale 

(10th Anniversary Royal Albert Hall)

Your Breath Near Mine

At times, when we need to know something about perfection, know this, the movement of your breath near mine might do, or the beating of our hearts. 

       “Please send me your last pair of shoes, worn out with dancing as you mentioned in your letter, so that I might have something to press against my heart.”- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

    This quote always makes me tear up, because I believe it captures the end of a love story. I'm not sure what it actually references, and today I attempted a vigorous google search (on behalf of this blog) to no avail. For this, I am somewhat grateful, as the quote is preserved in my mind. 

     At the end of a love story, if it is good, true, real, and nurturing, that is exactly what will have happened - you will have given each other so many moments to celebrate, surely your shoes will be worn out by dancing. And is there a better memory of someone than to be able to think, "We did it all. We lived it all. We experienced everything this earth had to offer, with each other." Yes, the worn soles of your shoes can reflect a celebrated soul, and that's why I cherish this quote, it has given me profound imagery that only great writers can bring forth. 

      Goethe is rumored to have fallen deeply in love with the Polish composer Maria Agata Szymanowska, though their relationship never came to much formally. It reminded me of a similar patron/artist situation that amounted to much more. 

      The famous Russian composer, Tchaikovsky, was supported for thirteen years by Nadezhda Filaretovna von Meck. Their relationship is documented through the exchange of over a thousand letters. Von Meck was a professed misogamist and Tchaikovsky a closeted homosexual, so the love they spoke of was entirely spiritual. Yet, there was passionate love exchanged in the letters, evolving into one of the most documented epistolary friendships of all time. 

     Their friendship ended with a letter, and there are various viewpoints as to the magnitude of that friendship in both of their lives. Her final letter said she could no longer support him financially (she claimed her eleven living children used up much of the estate money). She ends the letter with the words "remember me sometimes."

       His final letter back ends as follows: "Without exaggeration I can say that I did not forget you and will never forget for a single minute, because when I think about myself, my thoughts always and inevitably run to you." 

       And that's exactly how it is with love, your thoughts effortlessly included the person you love. As Hafiz says, it becomes the "beating of our hearts" that make for a love story in which you can write: “Please send me your last pair of shoes, worn out with dancing...so that I might have something to press against my heart" (Goethe). 

                                                           Symphony No. 4 in F minor 

"Dedicated to my best friend"

Tchaikovsky's dedication to von Meck 

When I Am Close

Your heart cannot be alone when I am close. 

       "If you were to hear me imitating Pavarotti in the shower every morning, you would know how much you have changed my life." - Robert Phillips, from The Changed Man

      While to girls there may only be one way to say "I love you" (the direct three-word way), poetry knows it in many ways and that's one one of the many reasons why I love poetry. What does it mean to wake up singing? To wake up singing one of the best opera vocalists of all time? And all because of you?
        In an interview by the Poetry Foundation, they asked poet, Ben Kopel, what a poem was and he said "A love song. Aren't they all in some way?"

What Is True 

by Ben Kopel

one must be one

to ever be two

and if you

were a day

I'd find a way

to live

through you

I Will Follow You Into The Dark (2010), Death Cab For Cutie

Anoint With Dance and Flowers

Let's anoint this earth with dance and flowers! 

          There is a story about the ancient peoples looking forward to the day that a tree grew from the ashes of a volcano. I read this on StumbleUpon and didn't bother to read the meaning of the story, as I had already thought of my own. I think this can be a very comforting thought, out of destruction (the volcano...or a life that's taken a hectic turn) can come beauty (the tree...or a reason to celebrate). This feeling reminded me of something Paulo Coelho said in Brida. At first, I was only going to include the first line, but now I've opted for the quote in its entirety: “Do not try to explain all of your emotions, it will destroy the bridge between the visible and invisible. Live everything as intensely as you can and keep whatever you felt as a gift from God."

        Enjoy this poem by e.e. cummings, "in time of daffodils". You can picture the daffodils dancing in the morning breeze.

in time of daffodils (who know

the goal of living is to grow)

forgetting why, remember how

in time of lilacs who proclaim

the aim of waking is to dream,

remember so (forgetting seem)

in time of roses (who amaze

our now and here with paradise)

forgetting if, remember yes

in time of all sweet things beyond

whatever mind may comprehend,

remember seek (forgetting find)

and in a mystery to be

(when time from time shall set us free)

forgetting me, remember me

2009 Flickr Upload 

Daffodils being commercially grown in Wales, 

to produce galantamine, a drug used to treat Alzheimer's disease 

Your Destiny

Your destiny is winding toward the Perfect. 

        To Hafiz, perfect meant complete. If you do not give up walking with the crowds, you will not find your true path. If you never walk upon this path, which is the true home of your soul, you will neglect to fulfill all aspects of your destiny. This reminds me of something Gibran said on working, a "requirement" that takes away time from "passion". Unless of course, you are one of the fortunate ones, living, as Gibran put it, via the idea that "Work is love made visible."
     

         Gibran On Work (full version here):

And what is it to work with love?
It is to weave the cloth with threads drawn from your heart,
even as if your beloved were to wear that cloth.
It is to build a house with affection,
even as if your beloved were to dwell in that house.
It is to sow seeds with tenderness and reap the harvest with joy,
even as if your beloved were to eat the fruit.
It is to charge all things you fashion with a breath of your own spirit.

Work is love made visible.
And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, 

it is better that you should leave your work 

and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy.

         No one can hand you your destiny, but it is true that joy may lead you in the right direction. Gibran knew that a teacher cannot give you his wisdom, but rather implore you to find your own: "The musician may sing to you of the rhythm which is in all space, but he cannot give you the ear which arrests the rhythm nor the voice that echoes it." 
         The rhythm you beat to is inside.

God Bless The Broken Road (2005), Rascal Flatts