Poem for Saturday

Sublime Generosity
By Jelalludin Rumi
Translated by Coleman Barks

I was dead, then alive.
Weeping, then laughing.

The power of love came into me,
and I became fierce like a lion,
then tender like the evening star.

He said, "You're not mad enough.
You don't belong in this house."

I went wild and had to be tied up.
He said, "Still not wild enough
to stay with us!"

I broke through another layer
into joyfulness.

He said, "It's not enough."
I died.

He said, "You're a clever little man,
full of fantasy and doubting."

I plucked out my feathers and became a fool.
He said, "Now you're the candle
for this assembly."

But I'm no candle. Look!
I'm scattered smoke.

He said, "You are the sheikh, the guide."
But I'm not a teacher. I have no power.

He said, "You already have wings.
I cannot give you wings."

But I wanted his wings.
I felt like some flightless chicken.

Then new events said to me,
"Don't move. A sublime generosity is
coming toward you."

And old love said, "Stay with me."

I said, "I will."

You are the fountain of the sun's light.
I am a willow shadow on the ground.
You make my raggedness silky.

The soul at dawn is like darkened water
that slowly begins to say Thank you, Thank you

Then at sunset, again, Venus gradually
changes into the moon and then the whole night sky.

This comes of smiling back
at your smile.

The chess master says nothing,
other than moving the silent chess piece.

That I am part of the ploys
of this game makes me
amazingly happy.

--------

My kids had no school again today, my editor is on vacation, so of course Star Trek news hit the fan all over. Just trying to cover the rallies alone required reading numerous articles. I did not even manage to figure out why Firefox won't let me listen here to see if I'd made a complete fool of myself. Has anyone out there got capture software by any chance that can download All Things Considered from the site instead of my having to stream it, by any chance? I would be enormously grateful.

And speaking of Trek, here is my negative-bordering-on-scathing "Divergence" review. It's almost too bad that last week's episode was so thoroughly enjoyable on every level, because the sequel was bound to be a letdown, but really there is no excuse for utterly ridiculous science and for gratuitous nonsensical cloak-and-dagger crap! I am feeling terribly deflated, not in the mood for covering the ways in which fans can spend their money to try to save the show. While writing the review roundup today I noted that one reviewer had admitted to being uncomfortable with the extent to which Enterprise is the fanboy show this season, and I know what he means: I can tell original Trekkies lots of good reasons to watch it, but new audiences, not so much.

To get the kids out of the house today, we picked up and went out for Indian food for lunch. Everyone ate very well. Then we had dinner at my parents, Mexican food, and everyone ate very well again! Snow days are obviously not good for my waistline. In between I actually succeeded in making them do some homework and practice the violin, and then as a reward we all sat down and watched Highlander together -- "The Lady and the Tiger," because they like Jason Isaacs nearly as much as I do, though for completely different reasons (they seem to be under the impression that he might be a tough guy or something and don't seem to notice his exceptional hotness at all). My older son liked Amanda, too, but ironically their favorite character seems to be Richie. Which I suppose is why he's on the show.

: Strike a Pose
1. Do you own a camera? Describe it: I think everyone here knows this already. *g* I use two regularly, a Nikon Coolpix 995 which is the world's most perfect digital camera unless you're planning to print 8x14s or larger or unless carrying a lot of weight bothers you; hence I also now have a Nikon Coolpix 4100, which has a lot of preprogrammable modes, weighs next to nothing and fits in the palm of my hand.
2. Do you prefer digital or film? Digital. I only took pictures of my kids in scenery when I had to pay to print every photo. I still know next to nothing about 35mm photography.
3. When is the last time you posed for a picture? I'm not sure but I bet my mother took it at some family gathering. My birthday or Chanukah maybe.
4. Tell us about your favorite photograph: My father took this one on a boat, the first sunrise of the new millennium, which involves several of my favorite things -- sea, sunlight, and a spiritual sort of sense. Of photos I've taken, it's probably this one of Stonehenge, for sentimental reasons as well as photographic ones.
5. Use the flash or flash the camera? Use the flash.

: Name 5 shows/books/movies that you thought you would like, but didn't.
1. Farscape. This is the first time I've actually come out and said this in public: not only didn't I love Farscape, I didn't even like it very much. It certainly had some wonderful moments -- the episode where everyone switches bodies for instance -- but I kept trying to watch, and I'd watch for a couple of weeks, and then I'd just stop. I never fell for any of the characters in any meaningful way, not even Aeryn though I adore Claudia, and there were some I actively disliked.
2. Babylon 5. Say what you will...I think this is the most overrated science fiction series I've ever watched, and with the exception of the first season which I watched only sporadically, I watched it for its entire run. Even though I adored some of the characters and thought it had some excellent storylines, I just didn't find it terribly entertaining. Some of the actors were terrible, and some of them, while quite good when they had good scripts, just didn't seem to know what to do when they had terrible scripts...and that includes Mira, whom I adore even more than Claudia.
3. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. First time thought just emotional, second time thought just disappointed by own expectations; third time could admit actively disliked parts.
4. Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Which isn't to say that there weren't things I liked about it; which isn't to say I didn't love some of the characters; which isn't to say I'm sorry I saw it. But my reaction when I walked out of it was sheer disbelief at how completely unenthralled I was. Again, it wasn't as if I'd had any agenda; I hadn't been a big Star Wars fan since Return of the Jedi, hadn't read any of the books since the first Timothy Zahn novel, didn't have any sort of fannish vision about what I wanted or expected. But it wasn't that.
5. The new Battlestar Galactica. I've generally liked most Ron Moore projects, and I am perfectly well aware of all the pitfalls of the original BSG so it isn't as though I had a big agenda about what a remake should have included, but for some reason it hasn't held my interest at all. Intellectually I can appreciate the things people say about the female characters and the real world parallels, but it just isn't ringing my bells.

: Has had way too many surveys about death and dying in the past several weeks for my taste. No, I don't want to know when I am going to die, and yes, I have many goals I have not yet accomplished, as I said last time around...and that's enough said.


When we were at Brookside Gardens last weekend, they had a sculpture display by local artists in the greenhouse. Here are some more pictures of the artwork.