Thinking about Cold & Flu Season

Health and cheerfulness are brothers.
~William Hardcastle Browne

Yipes, here we are, heading into cold and flu season and it's hard to be cheerful with [insert your own statement about that horrible man, his enablers, and his nutjob fans]. Stress can make people prone to get sick, so we need to see what we can do to cope and ward off illness.

* Key things: getting good sleep, moving around (exercise), eating well/getting your nutrients, keeping hydrated. These are all things we hear a lot, but they're the foundation. How's your foundation doing? Our bodies often can tell what they need and try to communicate it. Try not to do that thing where you're tired and instead of paying attention and getting some rest, you just drink a bunch of energy drinks. If you can get some rest when you first feel an illness coming on, you might be able to ward it off. Don't wait until you are feeling miserable to lie down!

* I can't remember whether I've mentioned making elderberry syrup before. Here are a few recipes in case you would like to try it: Plain (3 ingredient) Elderberry Syrup, Spiced Elderberry Syrup, and Elderberry lemon ginger syrup. I am a fan of the taste of elderberry, your mileage may vary. Having elderberry syrup often in the early stages of an illness can help shorten its duration. (My kids think that homemade tastes better than storebought, but feel free to buy some. A lot of pharmacies/grocery stores are selling it these days and you can get it on Amazon, too.)

* Another syrup you can make: Ginger & Lemon Balm Cold & Flu Syrup. Lemon balm is very relaxing -- if you haven't tried it and you're feeling stressed out, you might want to seek it out.

* I also like turmeric tea and golden milk when I'm feeling under the weather, although I will drink them any old time. (True confession: I am lazy enough to mostly just have the tea and not make the milk. I like when someone else makes me the milk.)



* Apple cider vinegar is great for cutting through phlegm and a host of other things. I have talked about fire cider before, and recently I made a rose hibiscus oxymel (rose hibiscus vinegar with honey) that is a beautiful shade of fuschia, in addition to having vitamin c and being a nice stomach settler. Here's info about making oxymels.

* Stress Reducing Recipes from Fit Foodie Finds

* I almost finished without harping on having beef, chicken, or veggie stock, but I couldn't quite make it. Sorry, guys! Have some stock.

What else would you like to add? Do you have a special thing you make to help stay healthy?

O Sacrum Convivium

Ladies of the choir, I want you to sound like twenty-two women having babies without chloroform.
~John Barbirolli

How about let's not do that today? Soothing choral music for Music Monday...Arnesen performed by Kantorei:

Poets for Human Rights

There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.
~Elie Wiesel

There's an anniversary and memorium coming up and I thought it would be cool if we poets got involved:

On December 10, 1948, 70 years ago, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was announced by the United Nations General Assembly at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris. On this anniversary, the international literature festival berlin (ilb) calls upon individuals, institutions, universities, schools, and media who value freedom of the press and human rights to organize and participate in a worldwide reading in memory of the murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

I like the idea of participating in the reading, but I am particularly drawn to celebrating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in honor of Mr. Khashoggi. Anyone want to write a short poem (or two) for the different articles of the UDHR? I will collect the poems and send them to the international literature festival berlin (ilb) after we're done.

You can see the entire illustrated version of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights here. The drawings by Yacine Ait Kaci (YAK) included in this illustrated edition of the UDHR are protected by copyright and can only be reproduced to illustrate the text of the UDHR. (There is an illustration for each article, but I am only including a few here.)

THE UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS

Preamble

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,

Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,

Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

Article 1.

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2.

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

Article 3.

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

Article 4.

No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.

Article 5.

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

Article 6.

Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.

Article 7.

All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.

Article 8.

Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.

Article 9.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

Article 10.

Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.

Article 11.

(1) Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
(2) No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.

Article 12.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Article 13.

(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
(2) Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.

Article 14.

(1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.
(2) This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 15.

(1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.

Article 16.

(1) Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution.
(2) Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.
(3) The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.

Article 17.

(1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.

Article 18.

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

Article 19.

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Article 20.

(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.
(2) No one may be compelled to belong to an association.

Article 21.

(1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.
(2) Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.
(3) The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.

Article 22.

Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.

Article 23.

(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
(2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.
(3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.
(4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

Article 24.

Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

Article 25.

(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
(2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

Article 26.

(1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.
(2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.
(3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.

Article 27.

(1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.
(2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.

Article 28.

Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.

Article 29.

(1) Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.
(2) In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.
(3) These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 30.

Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.

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If you want to participate, send your poems about one or more of the UDHR articles to tabatha(at)tabathayeatts(dot)com by the end of November. I don't care how long the poems are or how many there are, but please do tell me which of the thirty articles they are about.

A Journey through the Pages has the Poetry Friday round-up. Thanks, Kay!

P.S. I'm going to be coming up with the Winter Poem Swap matches this weekend, so last chance to sign up for that!

Čiurlionis

Čiurlionis felt that he was a synesthete; that is, he perceived colors and music simultaneously.
~Wikipedia

Lithuanian painter and composer Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis (1875–1911) today. He died at age 35 of pneumonia. Despite Čiurlionis' early death, his legacy survives and you can find a school of art, museum, bridge, and asteroid named for him. I'm sharing one of his songs at the end!

The Gift of Friendship
by Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis

Evening
by Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis

Kings' Fairy Tale (Karaliu pasaka)
by Lithuanian painter Mikalojus Ciurlionis

Creation of the World - III
by Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis

Fairy Tale - III
by Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis

Monument of Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis in Vilnius, Lithuania
photo by Alma Pater

The body's bank account

Rare disease patients often refer to themselves as “zebras” due to the often referenced quote in medical circles “When you hear hoofbeats, think horses, not zebras.” That is true, but remember – there are many zebras out there, too, and we depend on physicians’ willingness to learn and partner with us to find diagnoses, treatments, and hopefully eventually cures for our rare diseases.
~Anna Hull

I talked before about the spoon theory of chronic illness. Today, I'm talking about another way to describe the difficulty of dealing with symptoms on a daily basis. This was written specifically about mast cell activation disorder, but I'll bet could work for lupus, chronic migraines, and other illnesses that fluctuate. It could also describe emotional energy that people use in a day.

Scientist and mast cell patient Lisa Klimas explains:

The problem is not just that I’m allergic to some foods. It’s that I’m not always allergic to the same foods as I was the day before. Or the same medications. Or the same environmental exposures. My reactions on a given day are the cumulative product of the amount of irritation my mast cells have experienced in the previous day or two. There is always a running tally in my mind...

For the sake of simplicity, let’s assume you have $100 in a bank account. Any activity that can cause mast cell activation has to be paid for. The cost is proportionate to the amount of activation. Getting a splinter: $2. Being hot: $10. Being in direct sunlight: $10. Standing up for 20 minutes while being hot in direct sunlight: $35. Cardiovascular exercise: $40. Arguing with your spouse: $60. Moderate pain experienced in your day to day life: $50. A painful medical procedure: $70. Mild cold: $40.

...You can make deposits into the bank with medications and physical changes. Getting enough sleep: $30. Wearing loose, comfortable clothes: $15. Doing orthostatic manuevers before standing up: $10. Taking baseline mast cell medications on your normal schedule: $50. Eating food that is warm but not hot: $15. Monitoring your exercise and stopping for breaks: $15. Wearing a cooling vest on a hot day: $20. Oral Benadryl: $25. IV Benadryl: $50. Steroids: $50.

So you have this running tally in your head all day long. When you start getting close to $100, you get stressed. You know you can’t afford to spend more than $100. Things that you could have done four hours ago safely are no longer safe. Things you could eat on a day spent relaxing at home inside with comfortable ambient temperature cannot be eaten if your apartment is too hot or if you are in a lot of pain.

She says that people who see her on different days, see her being able to eat different things and sometimes give her trouble for it, as if she's faking. As Lisa says, "WHO DOES THAT?"

Lisa: "Cost for being around someone who gives you s*** for not always having the same restrictions: $75."

A zebra bracelet for people with rare diseases

Back into orbit

I realize that humor isn't for everyone. It's only for people who want to have fun, enjoy life, and feel alive.
~Anne Wilson Schaef

For Music Monday, something by half•alive that makes me laugh. Hats off to the those vintage jackets in the latter part of the video:

Creating Short Fiction

One of the great rewards of a writer's life is that it lets you read all the books you want to without feeling guilty.
~Damon Knight

Wanted to let you know about a book I just finished: Creating Short Fiction by Damon Knight. If you are interested in writing short stories, get your hands on this! So much good advice, plus exercises.

Connections

In string theory, all particles are vibrations on a tiny rubber band; physics is the harmonies on the string; chemistry is the melodies we play on vibrating strings; the universe is a symphony of strings, and the 'Mind of God' is cosmic music resonating in 11-dimensional hyperspace.
~Michio Kaku

Connective strings today.

photo by michael davis-burchat

String Theory Relationships
by Kelli Russell Agodon

The essential idea is this — the man you love is connected to you

no matter what, but he’s also connected to the woman

     down the street with the small dog that barks at the lilacs,

      and she’s connected to the cashier at the market who’s a bit rough

with your grapes, but he thinks you’re ten years younger than you are

and he gives you free saltwater taffy and calls you

      darling — but he also calls her darling, and her dog

      darling, and the man you love along with the grapes.

The essential idea is this — all objects are composed of vibrating anxieties

— everyone wants a window or aisle seat and no one wants to sit...


read the rest here

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photo by Alexander Baxevanis

A short poem from Alicia Ostriker:

The secret shape of this book is a parachute
all the lines leading to the person hanging there

drifting on the wind and always falling
waiting for the mists to clear

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[Thought that would be a good prompt -- "The secret shape of ________ is a ___________"]

Friendly Fairy Tales has the Poetry Friday round-up. Thanks, Brenda!

If you'd like to join the Winter Poem Swap and you haven't yet, email tabatha(at)tabathayeatts(dot)com.

An Invitation to the Arts

The arts empower. The arts give a voice to the voiceless. The arts help transform American communities and, as I often say, the result can be a better child, a better town, a better nation and certainly a better world. Let’s champion our arts action heroes, emulate them and make our communities everything we want them to be.
~Robert L. Lynch

A guest article by Lillian Brooks today focusing on helping children with learning difficulties be excited about the arts. Take it away, Lillian!

Getting Children With Learning Difficulties Excited About the Arts

For children with learning difficulties, the arts can be like brain training and therapy all rolled into one. The list of benefits is a long one: better language skills, improved problem-solving abilities, more confidence, reduced stress, and more friendships, to name but a few. OK, so you’re sold on the idea. Now, how do you get your child interested, too? Here are a few different approaches you can take.

Set Up a Hobby Room

Visual arts, like painting, drawing, and sculpture, are very beneficial to children with learning disabilities. As PBS Parents discusses, visual arts help kids to process concepts that they struggle to express in language, and help them develop their creativity. However, a big concern you might have is the mess making art can create. The solution is to set up a hobby room. Cover surfaces and the floor with sheets or plastic mats, and let your kids create without worrying about the mess they will make. If you don’t have a whole room to spare, you could set aside a corner of one room to use, and keep sheets and mats stored away when not in use.

Have Sew Much Fun

Are you short on space for a hobby area—and short on patience for messes? Don’t worry. Your child can still participate in visual arts with nothing more than a needle and thread! Weaving has been shown to be particularly soothing for children with ADHD, but no matter your child’s abilities, creating basic sewing projects, such as adding buttons to garments and making pillowcases, can be a calming, mess-free activity. If your child has sensory issues, be sure to let them pick their own fabric and other materials. Many children with learning differences prefer soft fabrics over rough, scratchy cloth, so take a field trip to the craft store to let your little one find their favorite material to stitch into something beautiful.

Buy a Musical Instrument

Many children with learning disabilities thrive in the field of music, due to it being a nonverbal communication method. It is also superb for brain development because not only does it sharpen their auditory skills, it also helps develop hand-eye coordination, while the pattern recognition developed from interpreting sheet music carries over to reading skills. It’s no wonder, then, that music can have benefits for children with learning disabilities, including reduced aggression, better communication skills, and improved psychological well-being.

Start by asking your child what instruments they might be interested in, and take them to a few trial lessons to see how they get on. Many clubs give you the first lesson free to see how your child takes to it. If they like it, get them an instrument of their own to practice with.

Take Them to a Dance Class

Dance can help children to develop their motor skills and coordination, and it’s a great option for kids with excess energy. You can find dance classes that cater specifically to children with learning difficulties or with special needs in general. Such classes often have less of a technical focus and more of an expressive focus, encouraging kids to convey whatever they are feeling in that moment. This Huffington Post article describes what these classes are like. Alternatively, you could take your child to a conventional class, which will focus more on things like technique, accuracy, and precision. Classes like this are great for building memory due to the complex steps that kids must remember, and they often come with a chance to perform on stage.

Go to Performances and Exhibitions

You might be able to inspire the desire to create art in your children by taking them to see some great art or performances. Most galleries have free exhibitions at various times of the year, or you could take them to see a live performance by a dance troupe or a band. Try to find something that’s age appropriate for your child or that they have an interest in. Six-year-olds might not appreciate the nuances of “Swan Lake,” but they may love a contemporary street dance performance. Likewise, many children get interested in drawing by copying comic book art featuring their favorite superheroes.

Get your child involved by asking them about things they’d like to do, but remember that they won’t know what they like until they try it. Be prepared to spring a few new ideas on them—at the very least, it will be an interesting new experience for them. If you’re persistent and willing to experiment, you’ll soon find something that they like.

Photo: Pixabay

It Runs Through Me

She told me that the groove is mine
It will take us through the night
And where I’ll go
Can’t explain I’ll never know
But it’s beautiful
~Tom Misch

Feeling good this Monday morning with Tom Misch feat. De La Soul:

A day becomes a story

Listen to the foam of my voice and I will pour it for you,
all the tiny stories in one intoxicating stream,
catching each other’s sparkle,
now, before the taste disappears.
~Lesley Wheeler

Seagull Egg by Sonse

A poem by Lesley Wheeler today.

Inland Song
by Lesley Wheeler

In some kind houses the doors
never quite shut. Every table
hosts a bowl of eggs—wooden ones
or striped stone, cool to touch.

What could grow in an egg like that?
A day becomes a story becomes a bird,
a lost seagull who shrinks each time
I describe him. Watch him fold

his filigree wings, crawl into
the shell. His song wasn't much,
but he tries to swallow it,
as if he can retreat...

read the rest here

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Writing the World for Kids has the Poetry Friday round-up. Thanks, Laura!

Inktober

When I was at school, I used to end every school day with fountain pen ink all over my hands and face and down my shirt.
~Edgar Wright

Celebrating a month of ink today. Inktober, invented by Jake Parker, doesn't have a lot of rules. Just four, in fact:

There is something magical in seeing what you can do, what texture and tone and colour you can produce merely with a pen point and a bottle of ink.
~Ida Rentoul Outhwaite



For instance:

Battle
by Juan Romero

Mysterious
by Roy Blumenthal

Inktober on Instagram
The 2018 prompts
Inktober Art by Poetry Friday friend Michelle Kogan

Balance

...One has to find a balance between what people need from you and what you need for yourself.
~Jessye Norman

There's so much going on these days that it's hard to balance paying attention with keeping relaxed. Only YOU know what the right balance is for you!

If you're worrying that the country is like a frog getting slowly boiled and you feel obliged to keep an eye on the hands turning up the heat, check out Amy Siskind's The Weekly List. (Also, here are Tips to Protect your Voter Registration and Vote against Hacking and Glitches.)

If you've been watching the heat turning up and you need to take your mind off it, maybe give creative visualization with these free relaxation scripts a try.

You can also listen to creative visualizations, such as this 10-minute one:



And there's always dancing...here's Josh Turner with Why Don't We Just Dance:

Neighborhood

A bad neighbor is a misfortune, as much as a good one is a great blessing.
~Hesiod

Neighborhood by Her, a French duo... "When the pair of them came up with the name, Her, they had already written around 30 songs, and realised that a recurring theme was femininity, but also love and women" (you can read the rest of the article here).

Invincible

When the first record came out, I'd go down to radio stations pretty much every day to get the record played, and I would walk in and they'd tell us how much they loved the record, but they weren't sure how much they could play it because they were already playing a girl.
~Pat Benatar

Maybe somebody else needs a pep talk from Queen Pat today?

Pat Benatar, Invincible:



Pat Benatar, Hit Me With Your Best Shot:



Did you notice that the Guardians of the Galaxy's ship is named Benatar?

Willkommen!

Welcome! Willkommen!

My son just finished applying to study abroad in Germany next semester, so we are thinking German around here. (He played for the German team last week in UMD's foreign language department soccer tournament. They had their own World Cup -- how cute is that?)

Today, we have a German poem about friendship.

"Ginkgo biloba" is a poem written by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe for his friend Marianne von Willemer. He showed her the Ginkgo tree in the garden of Heidelberg Castle from which he took the two leaves pasted onto the poem. [Wikipedia]

Gingko biloba
by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

In my garden’s care and favour
From the East this tree’s leaf shows
Secret sense for us to savour
And uplifts the one who knows.

Is it but one being single
Which as same itself divides?
Are there two which choose to mingle
So that each as one now hides?

As the answer to such question
I have found a sense that’s true:
Is it not my songs’ suggestion
That I’m one and also two?

Translated by John Whaley
Read the original German or other translations here.

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Are you interested in sending a poem and small gift to a Poetry friend? We've got a one-time swap coming up.

The deadline for signing up is November 2. Email me at tabatha(at)tabathayeatts(dot)com.

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Please share your link here!

Sea Lilies and Feather Stars

Crinoid fossils naturally contain small holes...the fossilized segments became a staple in rosary beading, and are still heavily associated with St. Cuthbert.
~Cynthia Griffith

Marine animals called crinoids today. Crinoids attached to the sea bottom by a stalk are called sea lilies and unstalked crinoids are called feather stars.

Colorful crinoids at shallow waters of Gili Lawa Laut, Indonesia
photo by Alexander Vasenin

Proisocrinus ruberrimus, a Proisocrinidae
NOAA Photo Library

Two Crinoids
NOAA Photo Library

Crinoid on the reef of Batu Moncho Island (near Komodo, Indonesia)
photo by Alexander Vasenin

Feather Star Crinoid
NOAA Photo Library

A stalked crinoid
by Ernst Haeckel

Fossil crinoids in chalk
photo by James St. John

Come Over Here

It's never the differences between people that surprise us. It's the things that, against all odds, we have in common.
~Jodi Picoult

Audiences from different countries, same fun.



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More joy, but across space AND time rather than just space (it's from the 1800s):

from Pictures of Flowers and Birds
by Okamoto Shūki (Japan, 1807-1862)