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Acrobatics (from Ancient Greek ἀκροβατέω, akrobateo, "walk on tiptoe, strut"

For Art Thursday, feeling smiley (although less bendy) as I get ready for my second vaccine shot this Friday.

Acrobat
Japan, 18th century

Sigur Rós

here you are,
glowing sun…
~Sigur Rós

For Music Monday, a couple of songs by Iceland's Sigur Rós:

NPM III: Blessings

Thinking about joining the Summer Poem Swap? You can do as many as five swaps (one every two weeks for ten weeks) or as few as one! Let me know by April 30th.

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I love that people have joined in my NPM project! My mailbox is open -- drop me a few bilingual lines!

First up, we have dear Heidi Mordhorst, who sent a poem in English and French and surprised me with this info, which I don't remember it from taking French:
to bless (English): give a benediction to, confer prosperity & happiness
blesser (French): hurt, injure, wound, offend

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I've been driven by a mad impulse to include a poem in each of the languages that I've studied (however briefly) so this week's challenge was Latin. Since what I remember best from Latin is Christmas carols, I looked at a couple that I remember the most ("O Come All Ye Faithful" and "Silent Night") and that was my launchpad. Weird, but you do what you can, right?

photo by Mark Gunn, poem by Tabatha

Videte

rainy dawn
the blooms greet us,
tender and exultant.
today, they sing.
Gloria.

pluviæ aurora
et salutabitis floret nobis,
tenera exsultat.
hodie autem cantabo.
Gloria.

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My faithful companion on this NPM project, Janet Fagal, wrote a poem based on a photo by Margaret Simon at Reflections on the Teche (“This Photo Wants to Be a Poem”). Janet had translation assistance thanks to Renee LaTulippe.

Nature’s Playground
Giant Oak Park, New Orleans
by Janet Clare Fagal

Ride the dragon!
Or pirate ship,
walk a tightrope
maybe skip?

Giant oak,
kids’ delight.
Limbs laid low
C’mon let’s go!

Imagination!
Run and play
This tree’s perfection
Let’s play all day!

Cavalca un drago!
Naviga su una nave pirata!
Cammina su una fune—
o magari salta?

Quercia gigante,
gioia dei bambini.
Rami bassi—
forza, andiamo!

Immaginazione!
Corri e gioca.
La perfezione fatta albero—
giochiamo l’intera giornata!

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Jama Rattigan has the Poetry Friday round-up. Thanks, Jama!

Excursion

Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

For Art Thursday, Excursion on the Bosphorus by Symeon Savvidis (1859-1927):

Toxic positivity

While we’re focused on fixing the problem and getting the person out of a negative space, sometimes all the person really wants or needs is to be heard, accepted and validated.
~Morgan Greene

I'm a fundamentally positive person, and I believe that optimism is helpful. So I am pro-positivity, but I definitely believe that some positivity is disrespectful and unhelpful. You can be toxically positive to yourself by not giving yourself room to have negative feelings, but my focus today is the way people do it to each other. I think I used to do this, to be honest. Maybe not the worst of it, but I can always find a silver lining, and that isn't always helpful!

* Everything Happens, a podcast by incurable optimist Kate Bowler (author of Everything Happens For A Reason: And Other Lies I’ve Loved)
* (Warning, tissue alert: Kate's TED talk)
* Do you want comfort or solutions?
* An article about threading the needle between complaining and toxic positivity
* I'm not knocking healthy positivity!

April

A poet is someone who stands outside in the rain hoping to be struck by lightning.
~James Dickey

Some recent photos...the blossoms in bloom, Ariana and Preston, and the tree in our backyard that was hit by lightning.

Sunny Days

The nights are dark but then they pass
~The Weepies

Ariana made a playlist for "vaccine joy" -- upbeat songs to listen to after your second dose (or your first, if you've gotten the Johnson & Johnson shot). For Music Monday, here's Song #5 on the playlist. The Weepies: