New Years Eve

 

Petie Barre

A Song for New Year’s Eve

by William Cullen Bryant

Art by Renae Taylor

Stay yet, my friends, a moment stay—

Stay till the good old year,

So long companion of our way,

Shakes hands, and leaves us here.

Oh stay, oh stay,

One little hour, and then away.

The year, whose hopes were high and strong,

Has now no hopes to wake;

Yet one hour more of jest and song

For his familiar sake.

Oh stay, oh stay,

One mirthful hour, and then away.

The kindly year, his liberal hands

Have lavished all his store.

And shall we turn from where he stands,

Because he gives no more?

Oh stay, oh stay,

One grateful hour, and then away.

Days brightly came and calmly went,

While yet he was our guest;

How cheerfully the week was spent!

How sweet the seventh day’s rest!

Oh stay, oh stay,

One golden hour, and then away.

Dear friends were with us, some who sleep

Beneath the coffin-lid:

What pleasant memories we keep

Of all they said and did!

Oh stay, oh stay,

One tender hour, and then away.

Even while we sing, he smiles his last,

And leaves our sphere behind.

The good old year is with the past;

Oh be the new as kind!

Oh stay, oh stay,

One parting strain, and then away.

New Years Eve

 

Rudyard Kipling

 

Dena Bain Taylor

  

Happy birthday to Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936), English short-story writer, poet, and novelist chiefly remembered for his tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1907.

"Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind."

"He wrapped himself in quotations - as a beggar would enfold himself in the purple of Emperors."

"I always prefer to believe the best of everybody; it saves so much trouble."

"We're all islands shouting lies to each other across seas of misunderstanding."

"A woman's guess is much more accurate than a man's certainty."

***

Photo: Penguin Classics

#writer

#OnThisDay

#storytelling

#writingcommunity

9 New Year's Resolutions Inspired by Dogs

 https://moderndogmagazine.com/articles/9-new-years-resolutions-inspired-dogs/131828?fbclid=IwAR2qzFUHOv3C_y92t1oeftwFbJRNy6eQZTARHKcs7euDRfVe5kbgyOX2SjQ

1. Treat Yourself—Take some time give yourself something special. 

2. Get Your Beauty Rest—No matter how long it takes.

3. Do More Cardio—Get into fitness!

4. Make New Friends—Bella, the black lab, and Bubbles, the African elephant, formed a bond and share their love of swimming.

5. Drink More Water—Get hydrated!

 

6. Don't Be Afraid to Look a Little Silly

 

7. Make Time for Self-Care. Enjoy the finer things in life.

 

8. Get a Little Dirty—That's one satisfied pup!

 

9. Get back into music, like Beagle Buddy Mercury.

10 THINGS TIME HAS TAUGHT ME - Donna Ashworth

1. Most of our life is spent chasing false goals and worshipping false ideals. The day you realise that is the day you really start to live.

2. You really, truly cannot please all of the people all of the time. Please yourself first and your loved ones second, everyone else is busy pleasing themselves anyway, trust me.

3. Fighting the ageing process is like trying to catch the wind. Go with it, enjoy it. Your body is changing, but it always has been. Don’t waste time trying to reverse that, instead change your mindset to see the beauty in the new.

4. Nobody is perfect and nobody is truly happy with their lot. When that sinks in you are free of comparison and free of judgement. It’s truly liberating.

5. No one really sees what you do right, everyone sees what you do wrong. When that becomes clear to you, you will start doing things for the right reason and you will start having so much more fun.

6. You will regret the years you spent berating your looks, the sooner you can make peace with the vessel your soul lives in, the better. Your body is amazing and important but it does not define you.

7. Your health is obviously important but stress, fear and worry are far more damaging than any delicious food or drink you may deny yourself. Happiness and peace are the best medicine.

8. Who will remember you and for what, become important factors as you age. Your love and your wisdom will live on far longer than any material thing you can pass down. Tell your stories, they can travel farther than you can imagine.

9. We are not here for long but if you are living against the wind it can feel like a life-sentence. Life should not feel like a chore, it should feel like an adventure.

10. Always, always, drink the good champagne and use the things you keep for ‘best’. Tomorrow is guaranteed to no one. Today is a gift that’s why we call it the present. Eat, Drink & Be Merry.

Donna Ashworth

From ‘to the women’

https://www.amazon.co.uk/.../ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_fabt1...

ART BY LISA AISATO

#timehastaughtme #growingwiser #women #inspiration #newyear

A Friend's Greeting

 

Petie Barre

A Friend's Greeting

By Edgar Guest

Art by Lennart Helje

I'd like to be the sort of friend

that you have been to me;

I'd like to be the help that you've been

always glad to be;

I'd like to mean as much to you

each minute of the day

As you have meant, old friend of mine,

to me along the way.

I'd like to do the big things

and the splendid things for you,

To brush the gray out of your skies

and leave them only blue;

I'd like to say the kindly things

that I so oft have heard,

And feel that I could rouse your soul

the way that mine you've stirred.

I'd like to give back the joy

that you have given me,

Yet that were wishing you a need

I hope will never be;

I'd like to make you feel

as rich as I, who travel on

Undaunted in the darkest hours

with you to lean upon.

I'm wishing at this Christmas time

that I could but repay

A portion of the gladness

that you've strewn along the way;

And could I have one wish this year,

this only would it be:

I'd like to be the sort of friend

that you have been to me.

Love

 

Ravenous Butterflies

“Until one has loved an animal a part of one's soul remains unawakened.”

Anatole France

Shinya Okayama - Waltz fof Little Birds.