POEMS FOR VALENTINE'S DAY

By Debbie Bulloch



If you have been following these pages, you know that I love to write. Writing affords me an opportunity to give flight to my imagination, letting my feelings soar on wings of words. I write when I am happy, I write when I am sad, I write when I need to fill the emptiness that we all feel from time to time.

A while ago I wrote a poem called “Dream Lover.” I wrote at a time when I was feeling very blue. On a lark, I submitted the poem to a writing group to which I belong. To my surprise my poem was chosen to be read at a gathering of writers. I was present at the reading (actually I was hiding in the crowd) and was overcome with joy to hear my words spoken out in public; I was elated when I heard the crowd’s applause.

That was almost a year ago and I had pretty much forgotten about the poem. Then this morning I received the following IM:

Jaz Flossberg: Debbie, The Breakers Coffee Shop Arts Series presented "Love Poems" last night. Many of the poems were from people in SL. Your poem "Dream Lover" was read among the 14 poems selected. I want to thank you for having written the poem. It was very well received and helped make our presentation a success. Thank you.

There was my poem, once again, being read in public. I never imagined that words that I wrote in private would ever be read out loud in public; I never dreamed that people would actually enjoy my writing.

Here then is “Dream Lover.”

Dream Lover

Between the darkness and the light,
There lies a land
Of warm shadows and soft whispers.
Where tears and hurt are unwelcomed guests
And lovers are free to dream.

I hold my lover in my arms
And I look into his eyes.
Eyes like a cool spring lake.
In his blue eyes I see reflections of a life I once knew,
When I was my lover’s cherished one.

I hold him tighter in my arms,
And in his embrace I live again.
Softly, he whispers that he loves me and I fall to my knees
Drinking deeply from his sweet honey
Till there is none left for me to drink.

My lover sighs
And his sighs are like a lullaby I heard long ago.
Like a child, I close my eyes,
Daring to dream again,
Hoping to be taken back to a world I once knew.

In the distance, a songbird calls out to his mate
Slowly, I open my eyes
And my lover is gone.
Nothing left for me to hold,
But the cold and empty air.

Through the prism of a single, solitary tear
I see a freshly cut red rose on the pillow next to me.
And then I know
That when this mortal day is done,
My dreams will once again take me back to the one I love.

02.14.20008

Copyright © 2008 DB. All rights fully reserved.


“Dream lover” was written during a very dark period of my life when I was feeling blue and sad...and very lonesome.

Fortunately, I eventually came out from under the clouds that had kept me in the dark. When I finally came out from the dark, there was a bright, warm glowing ember pointing the way out. The following poem was inspired by that glowing ember.

Untitled

In the cold hour before dawn
When the songbird calls out to its mate
In the frantic rush of lovers
Reaching out for one another
In the moments of stillness
When words are silently spoken.

I feel you standing next to me
The glow of your eyes
Beating back the darkness around me
Filling my empty hours with love
And once again I come alive

I look at your figure, silent before me
Your arms reach out to surround me
And the tears and the sadness and the fears
Melt away into the foggy past

I keep my eyes wide open
Out of fear
Fear that if I close them you will go and leave me
Alone with my tears

I stand in a clearing in the thick forest
And through the tall, dark trees that surround me
A warm, autumn wind blows
And in my heart I hear a voice
That gently reassures me

I keep my eyes open
I’ve heard that impostor’s voice before
It is a struggle that I cannot win
And when the moment finally comes,
When I must fearfully let my eyes close - I let out a sigh
Because when the mocking morn returns
It will bring back its companion, the bitter loneliness

Later, when I finally dare to open my eyes again
As the darkness begrudgingly surrenders to the advancing light
I see you lying next to me, a perfect ghostly presence
I turn away because I have seen that ghost before

Suddenly, I feel your warm breath on my cold shoulders
Can ghosts breathe?
Slowly I turn and touch you, not daring to believe
And then I see your eyes open,
Two glowing embers looking right through me

Then I know that the voice I heard in my heart
The voice I’ve feared for so long
Was not the impostor’s cruel whispers
For you are here with me
And my lonely days and nights are gone forever.

10.20.2008

Copyright © 2008 DB. All rights fully reserved.


Thank you for letting me share with you this little part of me.

Happy Valentine's Day to all the lovers of the world. And if you are still seeking that special someone to love, do not despair, she or he is just around the corner - I promise!

SUPER BOWL 2009 - AIN'T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH ENOUGH!

By Debbie Bulloch



As expected, the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Arizona Cardinals. Final score: Steelers 27 - Cardinals 23.

And, as also expected, companies went out of their way to present some truly memorable television commercials.












Here is my favorite. (Yes, I know, I am a romantic!)

Clydesdales in Love (2009):

SUPER BOWL SUNDAY!

By Debbie Bulloch


Today is Super Bowl Sunday. If you live in the US, then I don't have to explain to you what this day means. If you don't live in the US, Super Bowl Sunday then no rational explanation will make sense - Super Bowl Sunday will not mean much to you.

If you have watch a Super Bowl game, you know that the BEST thing about watching the Super Bowl are all the television commercials. Companies compete with each other to have the best possible commercials.

Some of the commercials are funny, some are clever, others are just plain dumb.

Here is my favorite, all-time commercial.

I still cry every time I see it. I hope you enjoy it.

SATURDAY MORNING

By Debbie Bulloch


Today is January 31, the very last day of the first month of the year. Seems like only yesterday we were unwrapping Christmas gifts and welcoming the new year. Tempus fugit, indeed!

In 1972 (coincidentally the year that I was born) a group called Looking Glasswrote a song called Brandy You're A Fine Girl. unfortunately for the band, this turned out to be a one-hit wonder. After Brandy the band was not able to recreate their initial hit.

The song, however, lives on due to to the bittersweet tale it tells of unrequited love. It is a very pretty song and one of my favorites. I hope you enjoy it too.

BRANDY YOU’RE A FINE GIRL

There's a port on a western bay
And it serves a hundred ships a day
Lonely sailors pass the time away
And talk about their homes

And there's a girl in this harbor town
And she works layin' whiskey down
They say "Brandy, fetch another round"
She serves them whiskey and wine

The sailors say "Brandy, you're a fine girl"
"What a good wife you would be"
"Yeah your eyes could steal a sailor from the sea"

Brandy wears a braided chain
Made of finest silver from the North of Spain
A locket that bears the name
Of the man that Brandy loves

He came on a summer's day
Bringin' gifts from far away
But he made it clear he couldn't stay
No harbor was his home

The sailor said " Brandy, you're a fine girl"
"What a good wife you would be"
"But my life, my lover, my lady is the sea"

Yeah, Brandy used to watch his eyes
When he told his sailor stories
She could feel the ocean foam rise
She saw its ragin' glory
But he had always told the truth, lord, he was an honest man
And Brandy does her best to understand

At night when the bars close down
Brandy walks through a silent town
And loves a man who's not around
She still can hear him say

She hears him say " Brandy, you're a fine girl”
"What a good wife you would be"
"But my life, my lover, my lady is the sea"

Through the magic of YouTube, you can still hear this song. This then, is one person's interpretation of Brandy You're a Fine Girl. (Note: the graphics and the video quality are not the best.)



I could not end this post without sharing with you some of the photographs that I took earlier this morning on a short hike by the ocean.

I used the same subject, but tried different exposures and different effects. Which one do you like best?



I personally like this one best.








It was a lovely morning hike. Thank you for coming along with me!

JOSE MARTI - CUBA'S APOSTLE

By SanPaul Held






















"No man has any special right because he belongs to any specific race; just by saying the word man, we have already said all the rights." José Martí

Tomorrow, January 28 marks the 156th birthday of José Martí. In his short life Marti was a poet, an essayist, a journalist, a revolutionary philosopher, a translator, a professor, a publisher, and a political theorist. Through his writings and political activity, he became a symbol for Cuba's bid for independence from Spain in the 19th century; for his work Martí is referred to as the "Apostle of Cuban Independence.”


From an early age Marti fought against Spanish oppression in Cuba. At the young age of 16 Marti was sentenced to hard labor in a Spanish prison for his political activities. At the prison, young Marti was forced to wear ankle chains. The chains left a scar on is leg that, like the scar on his poet’s soul, would never fully heal. Marti was eventually exiled to Spain. From Spain Marti traveled extensively, including trips to Paris, New York, Tampa Bay and Mexico City. During his many trips Marti worked tirelessly to raise awareness for the cause of Cuban independence.

Marti’s greatness lies in the humanity and universality of his body of work. Although Cuba’s independence was at the very core of Marti’s soul, his writings reveal an intense passion for freedom, justice and equality for ALL people; not just for Cubans.

It was through his writings, poetry, short stories and essays that Martí sought to reach out to all men. He was an inclusive figure who was the very embodiment of Lincoln’s message of “with malice towards none and justice towards all.” In one of his best known short poems, “Cultivo Una Rosa Blanca” (I Plant a White Rose) Marti expressed the idea that we must extend the hand of friendship even to those who treat us badly.

CULTIVO UNA ROSA BLANCA

Cultivo una rosa blanca
En julio como en enero,
Para el amigo sincero
Que me da su mano franca.
Y para el cruel que me arranca
El corazon con que vivo,
Cardo ni ortiga cultivo,
Cultivo una rosa blanca.

I PLANT A WHITE ROSE

I plant a white rose
In July as in January
For the sincere friend
Who gives me his hand in friendship.
And for the cruel one who tears out
the heart with which I live,
I plant neither nettles nor thorns:
I plant a white rose.

In those short, eight lines Martí taught us to love all, not just our friends but our enemies as well. If only people would listen to this simple message, and took it to heart, there were would be a lot less suffering in the world.

Marti saw children as the best hope for a better future. While in exile in New York, Marti published a children’s magazine, La Edad de Oro (The Golden Age). According to Marti, the intention behind the publication of La Edad de Oro was "so that American children may know how people used to live, and how they live nowadays, in America and in other countries; how many things are made, such as glass and iron, steam engines and suspension bridges and electric light; so that when a child sees a coloured stone he will know why the stone is coloured....We shall tell them about everything which is done in factories, where things happen which are stranger and more interesting than the magic in fairy stories. These things are real magic, more marvelous than any....We write for children because it is they who know how to love, because it is children who are the hope for the world.” As a child growing up in Cuba, I received a copy of La Edad de Oro for my seventh birthday. To this day I can still remember curling up in corner of our backyard and being totally fascinated by all the different stories that Marti wrote. One of the stories in La Edad de Oro was titled “Tres Heroes.” It told the story of the three heroes of South America’s battle for independence. I still remember reading about the extraordinary bravery of the three men, Bolivar, Hidalgo, and San Martín, responsible for South America’s freedom.



On April 1, 1895, Marti headed an expedition that sailed for Cuba. The expedition, was composed of several Cuban patriots living in exile, including Martí, Gómez, Ángel Guerra, Francisco Borreo, Cesar Salas and Marcos del Rosariocristi. They landed at Playitas, near Maisi Cape, Cuba, on April 11. Once there, they made contact with the Cuban rebels, who were headed by the Maceo brothers, and started fighting against Spanish troops. By May 13, the expedition reached Dos Rios. On May 19, Gomez faced Ximenez de Sandoval's troops and ordered Martí to stay rearguard, but Martí separated from the bulk of the Cuban forces, and entered the Spanish line.

José Martí was killed in battle against Spanish troops at the Battle of Dos Rios, near the confluence of the rivers Contramaestre and Cauto, on May 19, 1895. At the moment of his death, Martí was leading a charge against a Spanish position. This was around midday and Marti was, as always, dressed in a black jacket, riding a white horse, which made him an easy target for the Spanish soldiers.

Martí’s “Versos Sencillos” (Simple Verses) foreshadowed Martí’s death:

“No me entierren en lo oscuro/A morir como un traidor/Yo soy bueno y como bueno/Moriré de cara al sol." ("Do not bury me in darkness / to die like a traitor / I am good, and as a good man / I will die facing the sun.")

José Martí's life-long dedication to the cause of Cuban independence and his passionate belief in democracy and justice have made him a hero not just to Cubans, but to all freedom-loving persons throughout the entire world. Cubans living in exile, like myself and my family, honor Martí as a figure of hope for the Cuban nation in exile. We see in Martí a bright and shiny beacon for the still unfulfilled promise of a free and democratic Cuba.

Please join me in honoring the life and work of a man born and raised in a small island whose dedication to the ideals of universal justice made him a citizen of the entire world.

¡Viva el Apostol de la Patria!

Here is a video salute to José Martí. It helps if you know Spanish.



The words of one of José Martí’s poems, “Yo Soy Un Hombre Sincero” (I Am a Sincere Man) served as the inspiration for the now world famous song “Guantanamera.”

Here is a version by the BuenaVista Social Club.



Here is another version of Guantanamera by Celia Cruz, one of Cuba’s most popular singers. No Spanish needed, just be prepared to move.



NOTE: I wish to thank my dear friend Debbie Bulloch, for giving me the opportunity to write about José Martí.She knows full well how much it means to me to be able to write about this great man of peace, who was forced to go to battle to fight for the independence for the land that he and I love so much. Gracias.

¡Viva Cuba Libre!

YOU ASKED FOR IT, WE DELIVER...

For the anonymous person (I think I know who you are) who requested Kodachrome, here it is. I wonder what kind of song Paul Simon would write in this new era of digital cameras, perhaps SanDisk, or maybe Lexar?

Anyway, here it is, Kodachrome:



Enjoy!

GUNG HAY FAT CHOY!

By Debbie Bulloch





















Happy New Lunar Year!



This is the year of the Ox.



If you were born under the sign of the Ox you are:

The Ox is the sign of prosperity through fortitude and hard work. This powerful sign is a born leader, being quite dependable and possessing an innate ability to achieve great things. As one might guess, such people are dependable, calm, and modest. Like their animal namesake, the Ox is unswervingly patient, tireless in their work, and capable of enduring any amount of hardship without complaint.

Ox people need peace and quiet to work through their ideas, and when they have set their mind on something it is hard for them to be convinced otherwise. An Ox person has a very logical mind and is extremely systematic in whatever they do, though they have a tremendous imagination and an unparalleled appreciation for beauty. These people speak little but are extremely intelligent. When necessary, they are articulate and eloquent.

People born under the influence of the Ox are kind, caring souls, logical, positive, filled with common sense and with their feet firmly planted on the ground. Security is their main preoccupation in life, and they are prepared to toil long and hard in order to provide a warm, comfortable and stable nest for themselves and their families. Strong-minded, stubborn, individualistic, the majority are highly intelligent individuals who don't take kindly to being told what to do.

The Ox works hard, patiently, and methodically, with original intelligence and reflective thought. These people enjoy helping others. Behind this tenacious, laboring, and self-sacrificing exterior lies an active mind.

The Ox is not extravagant, and the thought of living off credit cards or being in debt makes them nervous. The possibility of taking a serious risk could cause the Ox sleepless nights.

Ox people are truthful and sincere, and the idea of wheeling and dealing in a competitive world is distasteful to them. They are rarely driven by the prospect of financial gain. These people are always welcome because of their coolness and awesomeness. They are reputed to be the most beautiful of face in the zodiac. They have many friends, who appreciate the fact that the Ox people are wary of new trends, although every now and then they can be encouraged to try something new. People born in the year of the Ox make wonderful parents and teachers of children.

It is important to remember that the Ox people are sociable and relaxed when they feel secure, but occasionally a dark cloud looms over such people and they engage all the trials of the whole world and seek solutions for them.

(From the Wikipedia).

So go and enjoy!