Sunday, October 4, 2020

Day 2991: You become.

 

 

 

"Dan": ink brush drawing, watercolor and collage. (3)

 

1.ink brush drawing

 

2. ink brush drawing + watercolor

 




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Click here for  Norah Jones, Come Away With Me.
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A feel-good.
My all-time favorite ...
 


“What is REAL?” asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. “Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?” “Real isn’t how you are made,” said the Skin Horse. “It’s a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.” “Does it hurt?” asked the Rabbit. “Sometimes,” said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. “When you are Real you don’t mind being hurt.” “Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,” he asked, “or bit by bit?” “It doesn’t happen all at once,” said the Skin Horse. “You become. It takes a long time. That’s why it doesn’t happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”           
Margery Williams - The Velveteen Rabbit

 
 
 
 
 
2GN2S
 

arrival we see the world become a bit more darker and colder. In the old days, the winters in Japan were very harsh and so when autumn came people knew they had to start preparing themselves in order to                                                                                                                           In Japan, the beauty of the chrysanthemum or kiku (菊) represents longevity, rejuvenation and nobility. The kiku is also admired because it begins to bloom just as other flowers are starting to succumb to the cold and frost of autumn and so its bloom is a pleasant reminder to be resilient. There is a saying from an old Chinese poem that I read which typified this idea of being hardy in the face of adversity: “The autumn chrysanthemum braves the frost.” This metaphor reminds us that one’s true beauty comes out when they stand bravely in the face of adversity. As the season changes, the kiku knows that the autumn cold is also coming but it still stands tall and blooms despite the fact that it too will succumb at some point to the cold. This idea of carrying out one’s duty despite imminent death is very samurai like. Does a martial art make one resilient or does it reveal what is already one’s nature? I am not sure. What I do know is that studying a martial art can change a person’s life because it teaches them how to understand themselves better which in turn makes them better human beings. When we know who we are, no amount of cold can affect us. 
The autumn chrysanthemum braves the frost to show us how to live our lives with a sense of grace, dignity and resilience.
(author unknown)
 
 


 Just because ... 

Royal Ruff, Norway

 



Smiles for Sunday ...
 
 

 





 















                                                                         Thanks for visiting.

 

 

6 comments:

elenor said...

Dan turned out really good.
I also enjoyed both stories especially your all-time favorite is so wonderful.
I hope you are fine, Jacki. We had a wonderful sunny day so we could go for a long walk.

Carrol Wolf said...

I think the Royal Ruff must have been in "The Devil Wears Prada" which we just watched last eve.

Took Stan to Zov's today for brunch and to tempt him with their pastries which I showed him on your blog. It was hard to convince him to go.

They only had the bistro side open, which is more elegant than the cafe. So I will know next time. Thanks for that suggestion. It's a "restaurant keeper".

john said...

Is Dan Dutch? He looks like he should be a Dutch fisherman. :-)

jacki long said...

Thanks, Elenor. Yes, The book "The Velveteen Rabbit" by Margery Williams is wonderful, and my all-time favorite book. I think you would enjoy it too. Maybe your library might have it? Or a translation?

Glad your weather is so good, we have been in a heatwave for over a month, but are promised Fall weather soon? Please take good care.

jacki long said...

An excellent observation, Carrol, the royal Ruff does remind me of that movie. I keep watching it, as it always appeals to me.

I am so glad you enjoyed Zov's, it is always excellent in my experience. I have been to the Zov's in Newport Beach, but both Erin and I thought it wasn't quite as good. Since you like it, maybe we can repeat it?

jacki long said...

Thank you John, Dan just kept evolving on his own. Using an ink brush to draw seems to keep it random.