I haven't posted the past couple of weeks. It's easy to let something slip - honestly I don't know where the days are going. November 2018? Well - what's been happening?
Last weekend myself and the in-laws had a short road trip to Victoria to attend a friend's wedding. For me, it was more of an acquaintance than anything but it was an excuse to go to the next state over which I haven't really had a chance to explore previously. It was about a 7-hour commute -- longer on the way back, which included a stop at a quarantine station on the border where we collectively worked our way through the fruit we didn't consume while at our AirBnB. In the end there were minimal casualties, some mandarins and the dregs of a watermelon.
The time has come to find a new place to rent and I've been trying to find somewhere suitable. No one *really* likes moving but I'm more amenable to it than my other half. I just try to see it as an opportunity to start over and maybe with the new surroundings reinvigorate, motivate or kick start things you may have been putting off.
This week I share a classic love poem by Dante from a collection of poems I borrowed from the library. While the poem may, in part, refer to being reminded of an old love in the face of another, I like to take it in the slightly romantic notion of coming across someone you felt you have known in other lifetimes.
Sudden Light
I have been here before,
But when or how I cannot tell:
I know the grass beyond the door,
The sweet keen smell,
The sighing sound, the lights around the shore.
You have been mine before --
How long ago I may not know:
But just when at that swallow's soar
Your neck turned so,
Some veil did fall -- I knew it all of yore.
Has this thus before?
And shall not thus time's eddying flight
Still with our lives our love restore
In death's despite
And day and night yield one delight once more?
Dante Gabriel Rossetti
This week's roundup is being hosted by Michelle over at Today's Little Ditty. Have a great weekend :)
I love your attitude about moving... truly, change is the only constant, so yes, let's embrace it! xo
ReplyDeleteMy husband had a small plaque at his desk that read "Change is Good!" and we both embraced it, tried to take on different challenges, though we didn't move very much. Best wishes for your move. This part of Dante's poem touched me: "But just when at that swallow's soar/Your neck turned so," I do see some things that take me to other memories, like this line implies. Thanks, Erin.
ReplyDeleteThanks Linda. It's a good mantra to have and forces us to extend our boundaries.
DeleteI'm glad you managed to make your way through the fruit! I always feel bad when I end up tossing things. Good luck with your move!
ReplyDeleteI thought it would be cool to hear this poem read, so I checked YouTube and found a steamy scene with Aidan Turner (I was wondering if they would ever get to the poem, but they did :-)) and also this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pkDfbhBjmk
Thanks Tabatha. Both renditions were enjoyable for different reasons, haha!
DeleteI moved a lot as a child, and my family always embraced moving as a chance to start fresh, which is funny, since as an adult I've lived in the same place for 10 years now. ;-)
ReplyDeleteYou get the best of both. I imagine as you get older moving becomes less enjoyable - particularly as things tend to accumulate. But for the right reasons it can be good (and an excuse to sort through all the things that you should have thrown away ages ago)
DeleteHope your move is a great kick start--and thanks for sharing Dante's poem. I have not read it before--great structure, great language.
ReplyDeleteYour post reminds me of when I moved from New Mexico to Sydney with a young toddler, Erin. Had another child while I was there and then moved to Florida about six years after that. I've never found moving invigorating, but change has definitely become a way of life. It pays to be a romantic about it. :)
ReplyDeleteIndeed. A forced change is probably more jarring but if it's intended or at least necessary, thinking about the end goal helps you move through the bumpy transitional period.
DeleteBeautiful poem! I can relate to the excitement of moving...at least until I think about the process of packing and unpacking!
ReplyDeleteSame! There's always the boxes that remain packed and unsorted and I try to forget about them. Haha.
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