Second Chance The Mind Cupboard

 Dear Reader,

Roses are thought to have been first cultivated in China where they were grown in the imperial gardens of the Chou dynasty as described by Confucius (551-479 BC).  Many of the cultivated roses we grow today are hybrids and selections from species native to china. 

In Greek mythology the rose was beloved and considered sacred by Aphrodite, the goddess of love.  That connection with romantic love was paralleled in Roman mythology, associated with Aphrodite's counterpart, Venus.  

Roses have a time honoured place as a symbol of love in literature and poetry.  Roses in the ancient Mediterranean were symbols of religious devotion, erotic desire and luxury.  They were used in incense and aphrodisiacs, garlands and perfumes, wines and food.  They were also an important medicinal ingredient.   The juice from the rose petals was used as a rinse for sores in the mouth and the gums.

The worlds oldest living rose is believed to be 1,000 years old.  It grows on the wall of the Cathedral of Hildesheim in Germany. 

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From Francis Kilvert  June 7th  1874  in Wiltshire

'Another glorious glowing day of sunshine and unclouded blue.  But every day the drought grows drier and the predicted water famine is stealing upon us.   Every day the pasture grows whiter and more bare and slippery .....Later the warm soft night was laden with perfume and the sweet scent of the syringa'.

 

From Gilbert White  June 7th  1783 in Hampshire

'Tulips have faded.   Honeysuckles still in beauty.   My columbines are very beautiful.  Tied some of the stems with pieces of worsted, to mark them for seed. Planted out pots of green cucumbers.'

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Second Chance

 

So do the juices

that you thought

had run dry:  flow again?

 

You had forgotten

the tingling down the legs,

down the arms, everywhere.

 

Then faint in body,

stumbling to stand,

memories return.

 

Your heart jumps now

at a word,

smiles at a thought.

 

Yes it can happen.

 

Age is no barrier,

spirit is ever young

 

love again is possible,

                            for everyone.

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The Mind Cupboard

 

 

 My mind cupboard overflows

with unwanted debris.

It needs a spring clean.

 

I will brush away the cobwebs

of cheerless thoughts.

Scrub out the stains of childhood.

 

I will replace the brass hooks

corroded with salt tears,

empty all the screams

hoarded through the years.

 

I will replace the accumulated ashes

from the worn shelf-paper,

with virgin tissue.

 

I will chase and catch the wasps,

relieve them of their stings.

I will refill this cupboard

with love, and learnt, brighter things.

 

 

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 I am putting  'The Mind Cupboard'    on my blog each week.  It seems to be the one poem that people relate to and like best from my collection.  And in case you didn't read it last week or some time before, here it is again.  

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With very best wishes, Patricia