Tag: books

• Inspiring Spaces: An Amethyst Heart and Other Photos

  

  On this blog, I may share a photo of a new arrangement or design in my home. It can refresh your mind to have things set nicely, and often it doesn’t require much addition, but making some space or arranging, for artists working at home or anyone. I tilted the amethyst gem crystal an upright […]

  09/14/2022 3:54 pm

  art, books, creative process, egypt, garden, home, interior design, literary salon we keep, massachusetts, memoir, memoir stories, morningtime, my photography, nature, peeko, short story books, wellness

• “Hold Me Closer” Britney Spears and Elton John’s New Song, Thrilled About Books in the Night, and My Mom Comes to Visit!

  Aug. 31, 2022 First, I am very pleased with the air at my apartment home as last week I professionally deep cleansed the fireplace we don’t use (and is off)…a real professional will come in time (inclusive), but it is wonderful what a difference it makes. It feels like a whole new landscape or planet […]

  08/31/2022 11:00 am

  art, books, boston, fantasy, fashion, flowers, fun, home, library, lovingkindness, may ziadeh, memoir, memoir stories, monet, morningtime, music, novels, pop music, wellness

• La Salette Shrine and Retreat Center: Talk…—and Sketch

  

  …And now it’s tomorrow, and I have two little true life stories to tell. But first, this is the setting where I am now as I tell them: I’ve just finished all of my green tea this morning from this little mug that I was going to rinse in the kitchen when I noticed how […]

  08/22/2022 9:21 am

  art, beauty, books, boston, catholic, fairies, fun, garden, gratitude, heavenly, home, lovingkindness, may ziadeh, meditation, memoir, memoir stories, morningtime, my photography, my sketch, nature, peeko, philosophy, self portraits, spirituality, teatime, uplifting, video, virtue, wellness

• New Fantasy Novel Found at the Bookshop, A New Poem Sent In, The Fun of a Giveaway I Had Not Won

  

  This is the new book I found Uprooted by Naomi Novik at the bookshop last time, by an author of our time, fantasy genre. I picked it based on the cover first and then the line on the cover: ‘enjoyable fantasy with the air of a modern classic.’ I am currently reading the book (Aug. […]

  08/17/2022 2:28 pm

  beach, books, boston, creative process, english education, english literature, fairies, fantasy, fun, home, memoir, memoir stories, morningtime, my photography, mythology, novels, poetry, tea, teatime, writing process

• The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James, a Brief Book Reflection

  

  ‘A Portrait of Peeko with The Portrait of a Lady’ YouTube video featuring my cat Peeko: https://youtube.com/shorts/cajAJwnrpW8?feature=share * The Goodreads book group is still reading the novel, so I won’t go on too long (I’ll try), but I have completed reading The Portrait of a Lady (with Peeko especially affectionate toward it as never before […]

  08/17/2022 9:31 am

  books, boston, classics, england, henry james, my photography, new york city, novels, peeko

• “A Chipmunk Welcomes Himself” and “Caught Redhanded”

  July 20, 2022 (revised July 29th) A Chipmunk Welcomes Himself Sometime a week or two ago, the building door where I live was left open for a quick construction project. I walked in and two neighbors walked in a little bit behind me, the young woman giggled as she noticed a chipmunk who wandered in […]

  07/20/2022 4:24 pm

  antique, bath, books, boston, fiction, fun, home, memoir, memoir stories, narrative, nonfiction books, scotland, uplifting, writing process, writing theory

• “Friday Night Line of Wisdom”

  Friday Night Line of Wisdom I am all out of wisdom I could tell you; I could almost lift off the floor in flight for that: let’s read books and comb our hair through and place coconut on our skin and calves, can apply a little to the eyelashes on a clear mascara brush too…Let’s […]

  07/04/2022 10:39 am

  apostrophe, bath, beauty, books, boston, friendship, fruit, letters, literary salon we keep, love, meditative, memoir, memoir stories, morningtime, my poetry, poetic, poetry, prose poetry, reading, soulmates, tea, wellness

• “In the Deep, Unexpected Dark”

  May 18, 2022 In the Deep, Unexpected Dark —for May Ziadeh I cried my tears. I cried your tears on your behalf. I cried in the places where your tears melted and trickled towards mine. I felt your fears and my themes passing through me and on… I looked into your years, and wants, and […]

  07/04/2022 8:00 am

  21st century, angels, art, books, boston, catholic, egypt, fairies, free verse, fruit, garden, gratitude, Kahlil gibran, lebanon, love, lovingkindness, may ziadeh, meditate, meditative, memoir, memoir stories, metta, music, my mystical experiences, my poetry, narrative, narrative poem, nature, philosophy, poetry, poets, spirituality

• Meeting My Nephew who Loves Stories and the Books I’ve Found to Read Myself

  July 2, 2022 8:32 pm (with my sister, my nephew Jordan, and their dog Isabella) I got to meet my nephew today! He’s 4 months old and has already read (heard) so many books! (I’d told him, ‘Me too.’) He goes to the library for story-time and already dances too, and sings sometimes. So he […]

  07/02/2022 8:32 pm

  books, christina rossetti, ed sheeran, fun, henry james, library, memoir, memoir stories, new york city, novels, poets, reading, rest, self portraits

• Tell Me About You

  There might have been a small overflow of posts from 10 yrs ago or more come up in your email from the blog this weekend from when I was updating my WordPress plan…These were posts mysteriously restored and not an avalanche of relevant news, my apologies. I wrote this About Me yesterday to share on […]

  06/20/2022 5:22 pm

  21st century, abstract, antique, art, beauty, benevolence, books, boston, catholic, classical music, creative, creative process, creative writing prompt, dance, english literature, fairies, farmers market, fiction, free writing, fruit, fun, garden, gratitude, handmade, home, inspiring, interior design, landscape, library, love, meditate, meditation, meditative, memoir, morningtime, music, my mystical experiences, novels, peeko, philosophy, poetry, poetry books, poets, pop music, reading, secrets, self-reflection, short stories, sketch, sketches, sky, soulmates, spirituality, sun, tea, uplifting, wellness, writing process, writing progress, writing prompt, writing theory, yoga

• “As If I Had Been the Harp Then and the Hidden Music”

  —for Miss May Ziadeh You were close to me last night with your compassion and how you were cherishing me; I felt the feather-soft way your fingers moved through my hair, the shape of your hands familiar and welcome…You placed your face close to mine and whispered in my ear a little while, quick soft […]

  06/18/2022 4:36 pm

  20th century, 21st century, angelic, books, boston, egypt, free writing, fun, gratitude, longing, love, may ziadeh, meditative, memoir, memoir stories, morningtime, music, my mystical experiences, my poetry, narrative, night, philosophy, poetic, poetry, poetry books, poets, prose poetry, sadness, sky, soulmates, turkey, uplifting, virtue

• Stepping Into a Novel Set in 1000 AD Like I’m In It Already

  

  June 13, 2022 A beautifully unfolding novel I find myself at ease in the place and am amused to find myself sharing so many interests with the characters in this historical novel (set in Scotland about 1000 years earlier than our current time): Queen Hereafter by Susan Fraser King. I share with the characters interests […]

  06/13/2022 3:20 pm

  21st century, angelic, art, australia, beauty, benevolence, books, catholic, classical, classical music, ed sheeran, england, english, english literature, fiction, full moon, garden, inspiration, inspiring, library, love, lovingkindness, medieval era, meditation, missouri, moon, morningtime, music, nature, novels, philosophy, poetic, poetry, poets, reading, scotland, secrets, spirituality, susan fraser king, tea, uplifting, virtue, wellness

• Peeko’s Fiction Pick and Photo Shoot

  

  photos Jun 11, ’22 evening I am reading at a slow, meditative pace the novel, Queen Hereafter by Susan Fraser King set in Scotland in 1000 AD. I hadn’t seen many historical fiction novels set at this time or place. My cat Peeko (shown above) does no tricks; he poses his own way in these. […]

  06/12/2022 9:17 am

  21st century, beauty, books, catholic, classical music, creative process, english, english literature, fun, home, interior design, library, love, lovingkindness, medieval era, meditation, meditative, memoir, memoir stories, mindfulness, moon, morningtime, music, my photography, narrative, nature, night, novels, peeko, philosophy, poetic, scotland, soulmates, spirituality, susan fraser king, taize, uplifting

• An Intoxicating Book, A Bird Tries to Break into My Window, and More Recent Life Stories

  

  this flower was scented like strawberry and sugarcane 📰📻📚🌸 Intoxicated by A Book and Some Flowers I’d found a book recently called The Perfect Couple by Elin Hilderbrand, and I noticed before I read the book that it was scented so beautifully like the beach by the sea and a sweetly potent suntan fragrance…I breathed […]

  06/08/2022 7:08 am

  16th century, 21st century, beach, books, boston, edgar allen poe, edna st. vincent millay, england, english literature, fairies, fiction, fun, garden, greece, home, library, literary salon we keep, longing, love, medieval era, memoir, memoir stories, my photography, narrative, nature, night, novels, peeko, plays, poetic, poetry, poets, reading, rumi, sadness, scotland, sea, susan fraser king, tea, uplifting, william shakespeare, yoga

• Secrets

  *It isn’t always easy to know who will enjoy a certain secret with me or which one they may like. *If someone doesn’t like my secret it isn’t taken away from me then but it may feel like it. *Secrets are always safe in poetry and fiction. *I use the word secret lightly to mean […]

  06/02/2022 6:41 pm

  21st century, angelic, artists, books, creative, creative process, creativity, desserts, dreams, food, free writing, fun, gratitude, inspiring, library, love, memoir, philosophy, poetic, poetry, poets, psychology, sadness, secrets, soulmates, wellness

• Books and Art: Sifting Through for the Best of Rumi, Kahlil Gibran Scare, and My Creative Plan for the Day

  

  I do this too…(I liked finding this illustrated at The Boston Fine Arts Museum, my own photo of this artwork I saw there)…with my silver aluminum water canteen and poetry book, and a rock to sit on. Friday, May 27th, 2022 Sifting Through for the Best of Rumi I think I’d really confused and worked […]

  05/28/2022 7:24 am

  17th century, 19th century, 20th century, 21st century, abstract expressionism, arab renaissance, art, art museum, artists, azima melita kolin, beach, books, boston, bruce degen, childrens books, classics, creative process, egypt, english, english literature, french, garden, home, Kahlil gibran, lebanon, library, longing, love, may ziadeh, medieval era, memoir, memoir stories, morningtime, music, my photography, narrative, nature, new york city, novels, ocean, philosophy, poems of may ziadeh, poetic, poetry, poetry books, poets, psychology, reading, rumi, sketch, soulmates, spirituality, tea, wellness, yoga

• It’s Monday and the Right Rumi Has Arrived

  

  May 23rd and continues a few days It’s Monday and the right Rumi has arrived. I’d sorted through editions, I found this pocket-like book containing that same 800 yrs ago poetry, but this time presented by various translators, the main editor’s aim to preserve Rumi’s original rhythm and conciseness. I could see that coming true […]

  05/23/2022 10:55 am

  arabic, beauty, book reflection, books, classics, england, english, english literature, fairies, farsi, gratitude, literary salon we keep, longing, love, love poetry, medieval era, memoir, memoir stories, morningtime, my photography, peeko, poetic, poetry, poetry books, poets, reading, rumi, spirituality, translations, turkey, william shakespeare

• These Hands…

  In the post, A Note Found and a Bookmark and A Great First Art Show, I’d found some surprise things inside books, like a handwritten paper, so I decided to make up my own writing prompt with an idea I’d had…Whether you try this imaginary exercise or another, these free writes can be plenty of […]

  05/20/2022 11:17 am

  21st century, antique, art, beauty, books, classics, creative writing prompt, free write, gratitude, handwritten, handwritten letters, library, meditate, meditative, music, mysteries, poetic, poetry, poetry books, sketch, writing process, writing prompt, writing theory

• A Note Found and a Bookmark and A Great First Art Show

  

  I found this bookmark in a library book I’d taken out and read yesterday, a slim blue copy of literary insight with a little biography of poet Edna St. Vincent Millay. From that book, these lines of a poem by Edna I’d not heard of spoke to me most poignantly: The stone the angel rolled […]

  05/17/2022 7:57 pm

  19th century, 20th century, 21st century, angels, art, art shows, artists, books, boston, catholic, charlotte bronte, classics, creative process, creative writing prompt, edna st. vincent millay, english, english literature, fairies, fiction, fruit, gratitude, home, inspiring, interior design, library, literary salon we keep, may ziadeh, memoir, memoir stories, my photography, narrative, nonfiction books, novels, peeko, poetic, poetry, poets, psychology, reading, spirituality, t.s. eliot, writing prompt

• May 7th… Mother’s Day…Bedroom Retreat

  

  library corner this afternoon by the window This morning I was very excited to take out the newest flower that had been pressed for a month in a closed book on the shelf (without me intentionally looking; one day I opened the book to read and happened to see it; placed it back.) 🤫It’s a […]

  05/07/2022 8:07 pm

  20th century, 21st century, angels, antique, antiques shop, art, artists, birthday, books, boston, catholic, chopin, classical, classical music, classics, creative process, english literature, fairies, france, french, garden, grandma jean, gratitude, home, interior design, lebanon, longfellow, may ziadeh, memoir, memoir stories, monet, morningtime, music, my photography, peeko, philosophy, poetry books, poets, sky, wellness

• It Is May Again…

  Just give me two plums and a classic book to read and I’m good. I have a flower in a book that has remained closed for a month to be opened again in just three days. I learned that books are best treasured well by supporting their spines (kind of like babies), and that may […]

  05/04/2022 5:07 pm

  21st century, books, charlotte bronte, classics, english literature, fairies, fruit, garden, gratitude, handmade, home, interior design, may ziadeh, memoir, memoir stories, my photography, philosophy, poetic, poets, reading

• A New Pansy Flower, Creative Days, and a Pair of Literary Salon Tuesdays

  

  This purple and yellow pansy flower on my balcony was born just today, and I kissed it gently this morning when I woke and saw it there…😘 and again this afternoon. Welcome to the world. 😊💕🍃 And this ‘Birds’ print chair made me smile when I saw it at the furniture store last week! I […]

  04/27/2022 7:15 pm

  20th century, 21st century, ameen rihani, art, books, boston, catholic, creative, creative process, edna st. vincent millay, egypt, english, english literature, garden, gratitude, Kahlil gibran, kate chopin, literary salon we keep, maine, may ziadeh, memoir, memoir stories, morningtime, my photography, narrative, nature, nonfiction books, novels, peeko, poetic, poets, reading, spirituality, writing process

• Many a Thing…(A Trip to the Antiques Shop)

  

  Tues. Apr. 12, 2022 photo from Tues., Apr. 5th—“Pants by Peeko 🐱,” a perfectly good hemming this time, Peeko helping on his own when I got the pants ready (just ‘loungewear’, shown in previous post.) He was proud of both the task and his own joke: sitting like this holding the pants in place and […]

  04/15/2022 8:56 am

  19th century, 20th century, ameen rihani, antique shop, antiques shop, art, art history, beach, book reflection, book review, books, boston, childhood, dance, dreams, egypt, england, english, english literature, free writing, fruit, fruits, garden, gratitude, herbs, home, interior design, j.r.r. tolkien, Kahlil gibran, kansas, lebanon, literary salon we keep, literary theory, longfellow, may ziadeh, meditate, memoir, memoir stories, missouri, morningtime, my mystical experiences, my photography, narrative, nature, new york city, novels, peeko, poetic, poetry, poetry books, poets, prose poetry, psychology, reading, tea, wellness, writing process, writing theory

• “I Wondered if I Had Been a Bird”

  

  featured photo is a painting by Franz Marc, “Birds” (1914) I Wondered if I Had Been a Bird by Jade Nicole Beals for May Ziadeh (b. 1886 – 1941) I was very disturbed when what I’d found logical what could explain all this is that I could’ve been a bird before this. A canary, your […]

  04/07/2022 8:32 pm

  20th century, 21st century, abstract expressionism, arabic, art, audio poetry, books, boston, catholic, dreams, egypt, france, franz marc, french, germany, gratitude, home, may ziadeh, memoir, memoir stories, my audio poetry, my poetry, nature, new york city, poetic, poetry, poetry reading, poetry three, poets, spirituality, wellness, writing process

• Five Favorite Songs and a Tea

  

  “Ain’t it crazy what’s revealed when you’re not looking all that close?” 🔥💕🎶 …🌊💕 My own review of 🍃”Ali Shan“🫖 green oolong tea from Adagio: Sweet, dewy and refreshing! Takes you to the top of the waterfall, green-oolong leaves unfurling fully at the bottom of the tea pot, warmed as if by the very sun. […]

  04/07/2022 8:39 am

  acoustic, angels, books, boston, california, dance, folk music, garden, gratitude, hip hop, home, home design, impressionism, inspiring, interests, interior design, monet, morningtime, music, my photography, nature, ohio, over the rhine, philosophy, poetic, pop, pop music, singer-songwriters, spanish, spirituality, sun, tea, wellness