FreeThinke: November 2015

Monday, November 30, 2015

_______ Definitions of a Liberal _______

1. Someone who ardently tells his children Santa Claus does not exist, but would bitch like hell if he did, because the jolly old elf might leave sooty footprints on the carpet.

2. Someone who would indignantly characterize A Visit from St. Nicholas as a Home Invasion, and call the police to have Santa taken away in handcuffs.

3. Someone who would deprive his children of sugar plums at Christmas, because sweets promote tooth decay.

4. Someone who would deeply resent the prancing and pawing of each little hoof on his rooftop for fear it might damage the shingles and cause a leak. He would then become even more irate, because his lawyer would tell him there was no one in particular he could sue.

Baragrinch Alas! came to town

5. Someone outraged at the very idea that his long winter's nap might be disturbed by a sleigh full of toys born by eight tiny reindeer might descend on his roof with a clatter at any time after dark on Christmas Eve. Such a person would be apt to call a special meeting of the town council to demand legislation be written vigorously banning the Annual Visit for disturbing the peace.

6.Someone who scowls at each Christmas card he receives, because he A) wants to believe Christmas is a foolish myth dreamt up to extort money from gullible fools, and B) resents the notion that such gestures generally require a similar response of equally fake good will.

7. Someone who seeks to ban private displays of Christmas lights in his community, because they A) waste energy and thus harm the environment, and B) they are acutely insensitive to minorities, and represent an implicit threat and an affront to the dignity of atheists, agnostics, and members of non-Christian religions.

8. Someone who routinely stages lectures in every forum imaginable telling Christians that their customary modes of celebrating the Birth of Christ are deeply rooted in pagan –– even savage and barbaric –– prehistoric cultures.

~ FreeThinke (11/27/15)

Sunday, November 29, 2015

Psalm 136 (KJV)

O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

2 O give thanks unto the God of gods:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

3 O give thanks to the Lord of lords:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

4 To him who alone doeth great wonders:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

5 To him that by wisdom made the heavens:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

6 To him that stretched out the earth above the waters:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

7 To him that made great lights:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

8 The sun to rule by day:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

9 The moon and stars to rule by night:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

10 To him that smote Egypt in their firstborn:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

11 And brought out Israel from among them:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

12 With a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

13 To him which divided the Red sea into parts:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

14 And made Israel to pass through the midst of it:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

16 To him which led his people through the wilderness:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

17 To him which smote great kings:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

18 And slew famous kings:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

19 Sihon king of the Amorites:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

20 And Og the king of Bashan:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

21 And gave their land for an heritage:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

22 Even an heritage unto Israel his servant:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

23 Who remembered us in our low estate:

for his mercy endureth for ever:

24 And hath redeemed us from our enemies:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

25 Who giveth food to all flesh:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

26 O give thanks unto the God of heaven:

for his mercy endureth for ever.

~ § ~

Saturday, November 28, 2015

Clara and Robert Schumann at home c. 1840

FRAUENLIEBE und LEBEN
(Women's Life and Love)
A Cycle of Eight Songs by
ROBERT SCHUMANN (1810-1856)

Since first seeing him,

I think I am blind,

Wherever I look,

Him only I see;

As in a waking dream

His image hovers before me,

Rising out of deepest darkness

Ever more brightly.

All else is dark and pale
Around me,
My sisters’ games
I no more long to share,
I would rather weep
Quietly in my room;
Since first seeing him,
I think I am blind.

He, the most wonderful of all,

How gentle and loving he is!

Sweet lips, bright eyes,

A clear mind and firm resolve.

Just as there in the deep-blue distance
That star gleams bright and brilliant,
So does he shine in my sky,
Bright and brilliant, distant and sublime.

Wander, wander on your way,
Just to gaze on your radiance,
Just to gaze on in humility,
To be but blissful and sad!

Do not heed my silent prayer,
Uttered for your happiness alone,
You shall never know me, lowly as I am,
You noble star of splendour!

Only the worthiest woman of all
May your choice elate,
And I shall bless that exalted one
Many thousands of times.

Then shall I rejoice and weep,
Blissful, blissful shall I be,
Even if my heart should break,
Break, O heart, what does it matter?

III

I cannot grasp it, believe it,

A dream has beguiled me;

How, from all women, could he

Have exalted and favoured poor me?

He said, I thought,
‘I am yours for ever’,
I was, I thought, still dreaming,
After all, it can never be.

O let me, dreaming, die,
Cradled on his breast;
Let me savour blissful death
In tears of endless joy.

You ring on my finger,

My golden little ring,

I press you devoutly to my lips,

To my heart.

I had finished dreaming
Childhood’s peaceful dream,
I found myself alone, forlorn
In boundless desolation.

You ring on my finger,
You first taught me,
Opened my eyes
To life’s deep eternal worth.

I shall serve him, live for him,
Belong to him wholly,
Yield to him and find
Myself transfigured in his light.

You ring on my finger,
My golden little ring,
I press you devoutly to my lips,
To my heart.

Help me, my sisters,

With my bridal attire,

Serve me today in my joy,

Busily braid

About my brow

The wreath of blossoming myrtle.

When with contentment
And joy in my heart
I lay in my beloved’s arms,
He still called,
With longing heart,
Impatiently for this day.

Help me, my sisters,
Help me banish
A foolish fearfulness;
So that I with bright eyes
May receive him,
The source of all my joy.

Have you, my love,
Really entered my life,
Do you, O sun, give me your glow?
Let me in reverence,
Let me in humility
Bow before my lord.

Scatter flowers, O sisters,
Scatter flowers before him,
Bring him budding roses.
But you, sisters,
I greet with sadness,
As I joyfully take leave of you.

Sweet friend, you look

At me in wonder,

You cannot understand

How I can weep;

Let the unfamiliar beauty

Of these moist pearls

Tremble joyfully bright

In my eyes!

How anxious my heart is,
How full of bliss!
If only I knew
How to say it in words;
Come and hide your face
Here against my breast,
For me to whisper you
All my joy.

Do you now understand the tears
That I can weep,
Should you not see them,
Beloved husband?
Stay by my heart,
Feel how it beats,
That I may press you
Closer and closer.

Here by my bed
There is room for the cradle,
Silently hiding
My blissful dream;
The morning shall come
When the dream awakens,
And your likeness
Laughs up at me.

VII

On my heart, at my breast,

You my delight, my joy!

Happiness is love, love is happiness,
I’ve always said and say so still.

I thought myself rapturous,
But now am delirious with joy.

Only she who suckles, only she who loves
The child that she nourishes;

Only a mother knows
What it means to love and be happy.

Ah, how I pity the man
Who cannot feel a mother’s bliss!

You dear, dear angel, you,
You look at me and you smile!

On my heart, at my breast,
You my delight, my joy!

VIII

Now you have caused me my first pain,

But it struck hard,

You sleep, you harsh and pitiless man,

The sleep of death.

The deserted one stares ahead,
The world is void.
I have loved and I have lived,
And now my life is done.

Silently I withdraw into myself,
The veil falls,
There I have you and my lost happiness,
You, my world!

~ § ~

Poet Adelbert von Chamisso (1781-1838)

English translation of Chamisso's German text by Richard Stokes

Friday, November 27, 2015

The key is to keep company only with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best.

~ Epictetus (55-135 AD)

Thursday, November 26, 2015

THANKSGIVING SONNETS

To Thanksgiving

This holiday is often overlooked

One feels, because it doesn’t generate

The flow of cash, the airlines overbooked,

Hysteria at fear of being late.

A humble, homey, family-style affair,

No supernatural glamour European

Kicks Concupiscence awake to dare

Sobriety to drink and make a scene.

Giving thanks for what one has is not

In fashion in this Age of Gimmemore.

Virtue, quaintly comical, has got

Inhibited. It fears to be a bore.

Nothing satisfies, however wild, like

Giving thanks for home in manner childlike.

FT ~ The Sandpiper, Autumn, 1994

I have no words of praise and thanks today
That would suffice to even make a start,
But only empty hands, a quiet heart,
A joyful debt that I cannot repay.
The dry and empty cup can truly say
The measure of its need; now not in part
But wholly filled with light and love, what art
Of song or verse can praise enough, this day?
O Morning Star! If any word is true,
It points to you, the end of all desire,
And draws its truth from you, the hidden place
That all will find who seek. This gift from you
I’ll praise with words you give: through dark and fire
I’ll sing and pray with coinherent grace.

~ Holly Ordway

III

Thanksgiving starts with thanks for mere survival,
Just to have made it through another year
With everyone still breathing. But we share
So much beyond the outer roads we travel;
Our interweavings on a deeper level,
The modes of life that souls alone can share,
The unguessed blessings of our being here,
The warp and weft that no one can unravel.

So I give thanks for our deep coinherence
Inwoven in the web of Gods own grace,
Pulling us through the grave and gate of death.
I thank him for the truth behind appearance,
I thank him for his light in every face,
I thank him for you all, with every breath

~ Malcolm Quite

On Thanksgiving

Of all events parading through the year

Not one can to this humble feast compare.

To feel or offer thanks today is rare ––

However well our lives remain in gear.

As ease became the norm, we soon forgot

None of Plymouth’s Pilgrims felt regret.

Knowing death and cruel privation’s threat

Spoiled not their faith, or made them curse their lot.

Given much yet now we seem to crave

Immeasurable bounty we don’t need ––

Voluptuous excess revealing Greed ––

Indifference to the noble, fine and brave.

No pilgrim, pioneer or great tycoon

Grew up as a self-indulgent goon.

~ FreeThinke - 11/24/11

The turkey’s found its silence. So have we

The youngsters and the elders of this hall

Who welcome back both staid and prodigal

With equal eyes. Each knows his own degree

Of happiness on any other day

But this when neural tides must flood or fall

To reach the level common to us all

And flagrant colors fade to neutral gray

The room’s a simple basin of the sea

We yearly swim. Here lies the quiet bay

Where no one claims the single right of way,

Where each is bound to set the other free.

The beaches of this cordial shore forestall

The breakers dimly heard beyond our wall.

~ Lewis Putnam Turco (2010)

On Giving Thanks

Once upon a time, we knew that life

Never guarantees us anything,

Given that, why not just plunge a knife

Into your heart? No form of nannying

Vitiates vicissitude, and yet

Imagination hopes to set aside

Natural Law which says w’re all in debt.

God, the Source of Life, can just provide

The chance to be whatever we can be.

Happiness is found along the way ––

Achieving what we can with Charity.

No panacea can this truth gainsay.

Kings and Vassals –– equal in God’s sight ––

Should each give thanks as they fight the good fight.

FT ~ The Sandpiper ~ Autumn, 1996

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.

~ Moses Maimonides (1135-1204 AD)

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

The people recognize themselves in their commodities; they find their soul in their automobile, hi-fi set, split-level home, kitchen equipment.

~ Herbert Marcuse (1898-1979)

Monday, November 23, 2015

Not Waving but Drowning

Nobody heard him, the dead man,

But still he lay moaning:

I was much further out than you thought

And not waving but drowning.

Poor chap, he always loved larking

And now he’s dead

It must have been too cold for him

his heart gave way,

They said.

Oh, no no no, it was too cold always

(Still the dead one lay moaning)

I was much too far out all my life

And not waving but drowning.

~ Stevie Smith (1902-1971)

Sunday, November 22, 2015

Just as the soul fills the body, so God fills the world. Just as the soul bears the body, so God endures the world. Just as the soul sees but is not seen, so God sees but is not seen. Just as the soul feeds the body, so God gives food to the world.

~ Marcus Tullius Cicero (107-43 BC)