was the mythological "Fall"
the moment we made our love conditional?
Is conditional love; Law?.........
GREAT questions Now, I finally have time to read the story you placed here, Diane
.~ Lizzy
rusty old and beautiful
. -
Diane
Hi Lizzy,
it is very sad, isn't it? I first heard it when my son came home from school when he was about 5 or 6 and told it me.
I see Mat has started a new thread from the story, so I guess I'll go there... .
Did you enjoy the rugby btw, Boss? I'm afraid I can't discuss the game cos I'm not a fan, but I hear it was a draw
.
Diane
PS I think we should adopt a dog from the nearest pound and call him Gelert, and take him for a ride in the ute with us .
it is very sad, isn't it? I first heard it when my son came home from school when he was about 5 or 6 and told it me.
I see Mat has started a new thread from the story, so I guess I'll go there...
.Did you enjoy the rugby btw, Boss? I'm afraid I can't discuss the game cos I'm not a fan, but I hear it was a draw
.Diane
PS I think we should adopt a dog from the nearest pound and call him Gelert, and take him for a ride in the ute with us
.
Two long-necks in the cold
...the fridge over there
that table in the cold morning
of red sand and dew
has two long-necks of Cooper's Stout
god's nectre;
they look good
this dawn
I have been writing now
for several hours
by moonlight
I deserve one to break the fast
for breakfast
Ha!
Why not!?
stout
I stand
and toast the new-borne Sun!
no still-borne day for me.
Salute!
"To the Sun
and your shine !"
...the fridge over there
that table in the cold morning
of red sand and dew
has two long-necks of Cooper's Stout
god's nectre;
they look good
this dawn
I have been writing now
for several hours
by moonlight
I deserve one to break the fast
for breakfast
Ha!
Why not!?
stout
I stand
and toast the new-borne Sun!
no still-borne day for me.
Salute!
"To the Sun
and your shine !"
Last edited by mat james on Fri Apr 25, 2008 3:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Without light or guide, save that which burned in my heart." San Juan de la Cruz.
I thought I saw the rosty old blue standing in front of that pub. I am surprised you guys haven't travelled further.
I see hurt, I see anger! I am truly sorry Mat, but I thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart that you bring, me being so demanding, to my attention. I work on it.
Yes and:
I am who I am... ! Isn't there a LC song with those words in it. I can hum the melody, but cannot remember the title of the song.
Love to all of you and thanks for the ride.
Katrin
I see hurt, I see anger! I am truly sorry Mat, but I thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart that you bring, me being so demanding, to my attention. I work on it.
Yes and:
I am who I am... ! Isn't there a LC song with those words in it. I can hum the melody, but cannot remember the title of the song.
Love to all of you and thanks for the ride.
Katrin
You know how alcohol can slow things down a bit, Katrin... so here we still sit . I guess we really just needed to wait for you to catch up, though, eh 
?
I was searching my mind for those lyrics you first named ... thanks for settling it for me .
Good to see you. We still have a seat saved for you, if you want to ride awhile .
~ Lizzy
. I guess we really just needed to wait for you to catch up, though, eh ?I was searching my mind for those lyrics you first named
... thanks for settling it for me .Good to see you. We still have a seat saved for you, if you want to ride awhile
.~ Lizzy
Bernie
Opal Miner !
Our dozer cut
was four blades wide
four stories deep
and on a bloody awful day
for open-cut mining
...eddying winds throwing dust
in our eyes
a trickle of dirt here
a pebble on my helmet there
and after a few hours of work
Bernie faced me
whispering
..."I don't feel comfortable"
and Bernie never complains
I threw his jack-pick over my shoulder
"Then let's go!"
we walked.
a twenty second walk
arcing up and around
in full view of that workface
"Pass me your camera Bernie"
anticipating
...and as it met my eye
hundreds of tons of dirt
and vicious silcrete rock
collapsed on that space
"good on ya Bernie!", I laughed.
Shit! he said
let's buy a carton!
which we did;
and quickly returned
in reflective celebration
and sat in the dust of life
surveying our 9/11
for meaning
we found it after a few
happy cans of mateship and laughs
Our conclusion?
we were both dead but for two things:
his intuition
and my willingness to accept
he knew something that I didn't.
we finished that carton of beer
slowly
and my old blue ute
nursed us gently along that
meandering
red dirt track
Opal Miner !
Our dozer cut
was four blades wide
four stories deep
and on a bloody awful day
for open-cut mining
...eddying winds throwing dust
in our eyes
a trickle of dirt here
a pebble on my helmet there
and after a few hours of work
Bernie faced me
whispering
..."I don't feel comfortable"
and Bernie never complains
I threw his jack-pick over my shoulder
"Then let's go!"
we walked.
a twenty second walk
arcing up and around
in full view of that workface
"Pass me your camera Bernie"
anticipating
...and as it met my eye
hundreds of tons of dirt
and vicious silcrete rock
collapsed on that space
"good on ya Bernie!", I laughed.
Shit! he said
let's buy a carton!
which we did;
and quickly returned
in reflective celebration
and sat in the dust of life
surveying our 9/11
for meaning
we found it after a few
happy cans of mateship and laughs
Our conclusion?
we were both dead but for two things:
his intuition
and my willingness to accept
he knew something that I didn't.
we finished that carton of beer
slowly
and my old blue ute
nursed us gently along that
meandering
red dirt track
"Without light or guide, save that which burned in my heart." San Juan de la Cruz.
This verse made me cry, Mat... with the gentle description of the psychological reality of a quiet, unspoken trust between two people that can, at once, be both life-affirming and life-saving... and its placement amidst the dynamic debris of your surroundings.we were both dead but for two things:
his intuition
and my willingness to accept
he knew something that I didn't.
...and as it met my eye
hundreds of tons of dirt
and vicious silcrete rock
collapsed on that space
So effective in its concrete description of the physical reality.
All of this poem is wonderful in description of a world I've never seen and, in this intimate sense that you have described, never will... yet, through your choice of words and lines, I feel I have.
Immense and wonderful, Mat. I feel the contemplation and gratitude of two grown men valuing life and each other.
I couldn't tell ~ for sure ~ whether it was written for a Bernie in your life, elsewhere, or for our Bernard here, as it describes so well an intuition that the two of you share.
Thanks
.~ Lizzy
Bernie is my opal mining partner.
We have worked together for years. This Bernie (not Bernard) was a migrant from East Germany, he fled the communist Govt. in the 60"s as a young man
and ended up in the opal fields of Australia with 52 other nationalities chasing their dreams of luck and fortune..
He has his own stories, wonderful stories, about his desert life, much of it spent among the matrix of cultures, Aboriginal and European Australian.
It was my good fortune to meet such a man, well respected among the miners around the region.
I will write a few words about my mate Bernd, below. It will be on the theme of relationship/women and his desire to get a desert lover to join him in his odd ways/lifestyle.
"...they are so soft".
He loves dogs and is gentle with all animals
and abuses cruel pet owners
really loses his block
He never lies;
just says what he thinks
very uncomplicated
looks like Omar Shariff
(his mother's maiden name was Elias!)
has no front teeth
and washes once a week
5 foot 7 inches
the physique of a body builder
at age 69
every muscle earnt
through hard phisical work
wants a woman 55-75
must be fit, relaxed and healthy
her own person
her own means of income
her own love of life
the simple pleasures
and she must like cooking for herself
and let him cook for himself
'cause he loves doing things like cooking
his way
and he wants people to look after themselves
in this respect
very unromantic
loves the desert
and the red sand
wide open vistas
If she doesn't like his ways
go home
...he's too old to change
great sense of humour
hardly ever drinks
but when he does, he does!
..and a happy drunk is Berny.
"I love women;
.......they are so soft...."
(any-one out there, female,silly enough, who wants an adventurous "holiday", send me a pm and I will pass it onto Bernie!)
We have worked together for years. This Bernie (not Bernard) was a migrant from East Germany, he fled the communist Govt. in the 60"s as a young man
and ended up in the opal fields of Australia with 52 other nationalities chasing their dreams of luck and fortune..
He has his own stories, wonderful stories, about his desert life, much of it spent among the matrix of cultures, Aboriginal and European Australian.
It was my good fortune to meet such a man, well respected among the miners around the region.
I will write a few words about my mate Bernd, below. It will be on the theme of relationship/women and his desire to get a desert lover to join him in his odd ways/lifestyle.
"...they are so soft".
He loves dogs and is gentle with all animals
and abuses cruel pet owners
really loses his block
He never lies;
just says what he thinks
very uncomplicated
looks like Omar Shariff
(his mother's maiden name was Elias!)
has no front teeth
and washes once a week
5 foot 7 inches
the physique of a body builder
at age 69
every muscle earnt
through hard phisical work
wants a woman 55-75
must be fit, relaxed and healthy
her own person
her own means of income
her own love of life
the simple pleasures
and she must like cooking for herself
and let him cook for himself
'cause he loves doing things like cooking
his way
and he wants people to look after themselves
in this respect
very unromantic
loves the desert
and the red sand
wide open vistas
If she doesn't like his ways
go home
...he's too old to change
great sense of humour
hardly ever drinks
but when he does, he does!
..and a happy drunk is Berny.
"I love women;
.......they are so soft...."
(any-one out there, female,silly enough, who wants an adventurous "holiday", send me a pm and I will pass it onto Bernie!)
Last edited by mat james on Sat Nov 11, 2006 1:08 pm, edited 2 times in total.
"Without light or guide, save that which burned in my heart." San Juan de la Cruz.
Hi Mat ~
Thanks for the clarification. I knew our Bernard wouldn't be your opal-mining partner, but I wasn't sure whether or not you might have used him in your imagination for this clearly-real situation.
I like your presentation, your character/personality description of your Berny friend. Berny sounds like a strong, independent, pragmatic, fascinating character with a soft, gentle side... but not going to give in too soon, either; maybe, never. Still, I could see the day come where he would sit and enjoy a delicious meal cooked by one or the other .
~ Lizzy
Thanks for the clarification. I knew our Bernard wouldn't be your opal-mining partner, but I wasn't sure whether or not you might have used him in your imagination for this clearly-real situation.
I like your presentation, your character/personality description of your Berny friend. Berny sounds like a strong, independent, pragmatic, fascinating character with a soft, gentle side... but not going to give in too soon, either; maybe, never. Still, I could see the day come where he would sit and enjoy a delicious meal cooked by one or the other
.~ Lizzy
A prayer for journeying innocence
Huge
log on the fire
-I try to rescue
a silly moth
from its Karma in the coals
but it is too late
the poor little thing
just lays there
face down in the ash
wings
that once flew high
that danced with optimism
chasing the quest
the light
now lay still
I take a twig
and flick her
from the ash to the orange
to "gold vermillion"
from death
to something
glowing and alive
-and I whisper a prayer
for journeying innocence.
Huge
log on the fire
-I try to rescue
a silly moth
from its Karma in the coals
but it is too late
the poor little thing
just lays there
face down in the ash
wings
that once flew high
that danced with optimism
chasing the quest
the light
now lay still
I take a twig
and flick her
from the ash to the orange
to "gold vermillion"
from death
to something
glowing and alive
-and I whisper a prayer
for journeying innocence.
"Without light or guide, save that which burned in my heart." San Juan de la Cruz.
What a lovely, touching account giving significance to a single moth's life.
Thanks for this, Mat. I try so often with different varieties of these rescues. Some work and some don't, but I don't stop trying. I related to every word of your description of your attempt and follow-through when you simply had not been in time.
~ Lizzy
Thanks for this, Mat. I try so often with different varieties of these rescues. Some work and some don't, but I don't stop trying. I related to every word of your description of your attempt and follow-through when you simply had not been in time.
~ Lizzy