"Love" by Pablo Neruda
Because of you, in gardens of blossoming
Flowers I ache from the perfumes of spring.
I have forgotten your face, I no longer
Remember your hands; how did your lips
Feel on mine?
Because of you, I love the white statues
Drowsing in the parks, the white statues that
Have neither voice nor sight.
I have forgotten your voice, your happy voice;
I have forgotten your eyes.
Like a flower to its perfume, I am bound to
My vague memory of you. I live with pain
That is like a wound; if you touch me, you will
Make to me an irreparable harm.
Your caresses enfold me, like climbing
Vines on melancholy walls.
I have forgotten your love, yet I seem to
Glimpse you in every window.
Because of you, the heady perfumes of
Summer pain me; because of you, I again
Seek out the signs that precipitate desires:
Shooting stars, falling objects.
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Another jar of honey
Some night I'll leave the sheet down over my open window, allowing the breeze to blow through the room, puffing out the fabric so it looks like a ship's mast. In those moments, I like to pretend my bed is part of this ship and I'm coasting through the open waters on a cloudless, starry night. After all, sleep is a time to regain lost innocence, right?
I pretend I'm traveling the world with Max to the place where the Wild Things are. I imagine we're drifting along waters drawn by Harold and his purple crayon, while Winnie-the-Pooh continues to search the ship for one more jar of honey. We sail under a bright, full moon, bidding it goodnight as we sail on.
I pretend I'm traveling the world with Max to the place where the Wild Things are. I imagine we're drifting along waters drawn by Harold and his purple crayon, while Winnie-the-Pooh continues to search the ship for one more jar of honey. We sail under a bright, full moon, bidding it goodnight as we sail on.
Poetry: "We Are The Music-Makers"
"We Are The Music-Makers" by Arthur William Edgar O'Shaughnessy
We are the music-makers,
And we are the dreamers of dreams,
Wandering by lone sea-breakers,
And sitting by desolate streams.
World-losers and world-forsakers,
Upon whom the pale moon gleams;
Yet we are the movers and shakers,
Of the world forever, it seems.
With wonderful deathless ditties
We build up the world's great cities,
And out of a fabulous story
We fashion an empire's glory:
One man with a dream, at pleasure,
Shall go forth and conquer a crown;
And three with a new song's measure
Can trample and empire down.
We, in the ages lying
In the buried past of the earth,
Built Nineveh with our sighing,
And Babel itself with our mirth;
And o'erthrew them with prophesying
To the old of the new world's worth;
For each age is a dream that is dying,
Or one that is coming to birth.
We are the music-makers,
And we are the dreamers of dreams,
Wandering by lone sea-breakers,
And sitting by desolate streams.
World-losers and world-forsakers,
Upon whom the pale moon gleams;
Yet we are the movers and shakers,
Of the world forever, it seems.
With wonderful deathless ditties
We build up the world's great cities,
And out of a fabulous story
We fashion an empire's glory:
One man with a dream, at pleasure,
Shall go forth and conquer a crown;
And three with a new song's measure
Can trample and empire down.
We, in the ages lying
In the buried past of the earth,
Built Nineveh with our sighing,
And Babel itself with our mirth;
And o'erthrew them with prophesying
To the old of the new world's worth;
For each age is a dream that is dying,
Or one that is coming to birth.
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Poetry: "Human Family"
"Human Family" by Maya Angelou
I note the obvious differences
in the human family.
Some of us are serious,
some thrive on comedy.
Some declare their lives are lived
as true profundity,
and others claim they really live
the real reality.
The variety of our skin tones
can confuse, bemuse, delight,
brown and pink and beige and purple,
tan and blue and white.
I’ve sailed upon the seven seas
and stopped in every land,
I’ve seen the wonders of the world
not yet one common man.
I know ten thousand women
called Jane and Mary Jane,
but I’ve not seen any two
who really were the same.
Mirror twins are different
although their features jibe,
and lovers think quite different thoughts
while lying side by side.
We love and lose in China,
we weep on England’s moors,
and laugh and moan in Guinea,
and thrive on Spanish shores.
We seek success in Finland,
are born and die in Maine.
In minor ways we differ,
in major we’re the same.
I note the obvious differences
between each sort and type,
but we are more alike, my friends,
than we are unalike.
We are more alike, my friends,
than we are unalike.
We are more alike, my friends,
than we are unalike.
I note the obvious differences
in the human family.
Some of us are serious,
some thrive on comedy.
Some declare their lives are lived
as true profundity,
and others claim they really live
the real reality.
The variety of our skin tones
can confuse, bemuse, delight,
brown and pink and beige and purple,
tan and blue and white.
I’ve sailed upon the seven seas
and stopped in every land,
I’ve seen the wonders of the world
not yet one common man.
I know ten thousand women
called Jane and Mary Jane,
but I’ve not seen any two
who really were the same.
Mirror twins are different
although their features jibe,
and lovers think quite different thoughts
while lying side by side.
We love and lose in China,
we weep on England’s moors,
and laugh and moan in Guinea,
and thrive on Spanish shores.
We seek success in Finland,
are born and die in Maine.
In minor ways we differ,
in major we’re the same.
I note the obvious differences
between each sort and type,
but we are more alike, my friends,
than we are unalike.
We are more alike, my friends,
than we are unalike.
We are more alike, my friends,
than we are unalike.
A few Clipper goodbyes
Today marked the end of The Clipper's 2011-2012 year. We finished issue 15, said some goodbyes, made promises to see each other again soon and laughed quite a bit. The Clipper is losing this year's editor-in-chief, photo editor, web and graphics editor, and our ad manager. I'm stepping up as the editor-in-chief. It's a position our current editor has been preparing me for all quarter, but it's also completely terrifying.
The people who are leaving aren't just my classmates or co-workers. These people are my friends, many of them very dear and close friends. So, while I've known there would be an end to this surprisingly amazing year, it's still shocking and just a bit sad.
At the beginning of the year, we were all on completely different waves. There was even a week of arguing tossed in there. I wasn't friends with the editor. In fact, the only person I was friends with was our ad manager. But now here we are, ten months later and we've finally found our groove. I've seen these people nearly every day since the end of August. Some of them more than others. I've built relationships that have taken root in my life - relationships I can't imagine ever living without.
Next year is going to be a roller coaster ride. It's going to be challenging without this year's editing staff and I know I'll have to step forward and take charge of steering our Clipper ship. But I know I can do it. I have over a year of experience with this paper behind me. It's over a year of struggling, laughing and carrying this paper with me wherever I go. No staff will ever compare to the editors and managers we've had. Then again, no staff can ever really be compared to another. Each one is different, just like the new staff will be different from the old one.
I've never been one to embrace change, especially when it has to do with something so important to me. I practically live in The Clipper office. We have our own little Clipper family. And next year, the family will change. The mood in the office will be different. Not necessarily worse, just different.
The one thing I know for sure is that those who are leaving - my dear friends - are going out into the world to do some amazing things. They'll change lives and they'll be changed along the way. As long as those individuals are happy in what they're doing, that's good enough for me.
This year has truly been a blessing, simply because of The Clipper and the people I work with. I could've never asked for a better staff and I could've never imagined I'd form such amazing friendships.
It's been a phenomenal year and I'm still trying to process the fact that it's over. But for now, I'll say goodbye to a job I've grown to love. Or better yet, I'll be seeing you.
The people who are leaving aren't just my classmates or co-workers. These people are my friends, many of them very dear and close friends. So, while I've known there would be an end to this surprisingly amazing year, it's still shocking and just a bit sad.
At the beginning of the year, we were all on completely different waves. There was even a week of arguing tossed in there. I wasn't friends with the editor. In fact, the only person I was friends with was our ad manager. But now here we are, ten months later and we've finally found our groove. I've seen these people nearly every day since the end of August. Some of them more than others. I've built relationships that have taken root in my life - relationships I can't imagine ever living without.
Next year is going to be a roller coaster ride. It's going to be challenging without this year's editing staff and I know I'll have to step forward and take charge of steering our Clipper ship. But I know I can do it. I have over a year of experience with this paper behind me. It's over a year of struggling, laughing and carrying this paper with me wherever I go. No staff will ever compare to the editors and managers we've had. Then again, no staff can ever really be compared to another. Each one is different, just like the new staff will be different from the old one.
I've never been one to embrace change, especially when it has to do with something so important to me. I practically live in The Clipper office. We have our own little Clipper family. And next year, the family will change. The mood in the office will be different. Not necessarily worse, just different.
The one thing I know for sure is that those who are leaving - my dear friends - are going out into the world to do some amazing things. They'll change lives and they'll be changed along the way. As long as those individuals are happy in what they're doing, that's good enough for me.
This year has truly been a blessing, simply because of The Clipper and the people I work with. I could've never asked for a better staff and I could've never imagined I'd form such amazing friendships.
It's been a phenomenal year and I'm still trying to process the fact that it's over. But for now, I'll say goodbye to a job I've grown to love. Or better yet, I'll be seeing you.
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Poetry: "I Will Love You Until"
Yes, this is a blog and I usually write full length posts. But I'm also a sucker for poems, so expect some sporatic posts of poems every once in a while. Like now.
"I Will Love You Until" by Anna Andrews
I will love you til the sun retires, until it burns out.
Until the rivers and sea dries up, or drowns the earth no doubt.
I will love you for as long as butterflies, dance in the summer breeze
Until the springs blossoms no more, until no sound of hustling leaves.
I will love you until carved trees by lovers, weeply fade away,
Until lightning no longer lights up a night, or strikes a destined day.
I will love you until all piano keys, fall deeply silent in fear
Of losing the curious spellbinding eye, and the craving ear.
I will love you until an artist, can no longer express his painted dreams
Until all beauty of distinctive sight, vanish within his screams.
I will love you until a poet, feels no pain in her written days
until the ink dries out, words are lost and pages are in a blaze.
I will love you until the wishing star that I wished that very night
No longer out shines other stars, or until the earth lose sight.
I will love you for enternity, forever may it be
Until everything has nothing, forever you'll have me.
I will love you...
I will love you until...
"I Will Love You Until" by Anna Andrews
I will love you til the sun retires, until it burns out.
Until the rivers and sea dries up, or drowns the earth no doubt.
I will love you for as long as butterflies, dance in the summer breeze
Until the springs blossoms no more, until no sound of hustling leaves.
I will love you until carved trees by lovers, weeply fade away,
Until lightning no longer lights up a night, or strikes a destined day.
I will love you until all piano keys, fall deeply silent in fear
Of losing the curious spellbinding eye, and the craving ear.
I will love you until an artist, can no longer express his painted dreams
Until all beauty of distinctive sight, vanish within his screams.
I will love you until a poet, feels no pain in her written days
until the ink dries out, words are lost and pages are in a blaze.
I will love you until the wishing star that I wished that very night
No longer out shines other stars, or until the earth lose sight.
I will love you for enternity, forever may it be
Until everything has nothing, forever you'll have me.
I will love you...
I will love you until...
Friday, May 25, 2012
I am. I am. I am.
There's a moment when I'm listening to music and I become so immersed in it that I can feel the vibrations right down to my bones. I feel more alive in those moments than I do at any other point in my day. I feel myself shift from a state of mere existence to one of someone who is truly awake and living. It's as if I'm part of the song, like my heart is pumping to the beat of the drums and my thoughts are the lyrics flowing with the music.
Imagine a body and the way blood flows back and forth from a set point - the heart. There are times when music replaces my blood. I can feel it make its way through my body until it's sitting at the tips of my fingers. It's a feeling that probably won't make sense to anyone unless they've experienced the same thing.
I believe there are things that can't be explained. Now, that may go against the "Journalist's Code of Life" or whatever it is I'm supposed to follow as a journo, but think about it. Sometimes there are things that just can't be explained in a sentence or phrase. If it doesn't make sense, it probably won't until you've experienced it.
I'm not saying to just give up on it if it doesn't make sense to you. As journalists, we're taught to seek the answers no one else can find. We're told to go until we can't anymore and when we reach that point, go a little further. When there are things that can't be made sense of, try to find it. There will be times when even those experiences don't help you uncover and answer and that's okay. Searching for something doesn't always mean going out and forcing yourself into the situation. Sometimes you just have to stay calm and allow yourself to be.
Imagine a body and the way blood flows back and forth from a set point - the heart. There are times when music replaces my blood. I can feel it make its way through my body until it's sitting at the tips of my fingers. It's a feeling that probably won't make sense to anyone unless they've experienced the same thing.
I believe there are things that can't be explained. Now, that may go against the "Journalist's Code of Life" or whatever it is I'm supposed to follow as a journo, but think about it. Sometimes there are things that just can't be explained in a sentence or phrase. If it doesn't make sense, it probably won't until you've experienced it.
I'm not saying to just give up on it if it doesn't make sense to you. As journalists, we're taught to seek the answers no one else can find. We're told to go until we can't anymore and when we reach that point, go a little further. When there are things that can't be made sense of, try to find it. There will be times when even those experiences don't help you uncover and answer and that's okay. Searching for something doesn't always mean going out and forcing yourself into the situation. Sometimes you just have to stay calm and allow yourself to be.
"I listened to the old bray of my heart: I am. I am. I am."
~ Sylvia Plath, The Belle Jar
Monday, May 21, 2012
Words of change
Think of a word. It doesn't matter what it is. Do you have one? Good. Now form a sentence with it. Form a sentence based off of the first one. And form another and another. Words are the grounds on which we've built our lives. I know it's generally thought that ideas are the ground level of our lives. But think about it. Words are used to express ideas. Even words unspoken are expressed through hand motions, a look or a physical touch.
I have a small obsession with the words of others. Quotes. I collect them in a journal, hide them away for future reference. I was particularly drawn to one I've recently found:
Maybe I should have called this blog "My Weird Posts About Senior Year and How I'm Really Not Looking Forward To The End of It, But Can't Wait For It To Be Over At The Same Time". Too long? Yeah, too long. The reason I bring up to should-have-been name is because that quote is my senior year.
When this year is over, whether we want to or not, we will all experience a change so huge and so incredibly important that it will be impossible to go back. There's a feeling I'm certain others have felt before. It's that feeling you get when you have a future plan, but you're still not quite sure what's going to happen.
I know where my plan will take me next year. It will keep in this growing town. I'll be at the same college, working in the same, old office with the same movie posters hanging on the wall. I know where I'm planning on going, or rather, staying. But knowing something doesn't stop the change from happening.
Steven Chbosky wrote it best in his best seller, The Perks of Being a Wallflower:
I have a small obsession with the words of others. Quotes. I collect them in a journal, hide them away for future reference. I was particularly drawn to one I've recently found:
"Right now, I want a word that describes the feeling you get - a cold, sick feeling deep down inside - when you know something is happening that will change you, and you don't want it to, but you can't stop it. And you know, for the first time, for the very first time, that there will now be a before and an after, a was and a will be. And that you will never again be quite the same person you were."
~ Jennifer Donnelly, A Northern Light
Maybe I should have called this blog "My Weird Posts About Senior Year and How I'm Really Not Looking Forward To The End of It, But Can't Wait For It To Be Over At The Same Time". Too long? Yeah, too long. The reason I bring up to should-have-been name is because that quote is my senior year.
When this year is over, whether we want to or not, we will all experience a change so huge and so incredibly important that it will be impossible to go back. There's a feeling I'm certain others have felt before. It's that feeling you get when you have a future plan, but you're still not quite sure what's going to happen.
I know where my plan will take me next year. It will keep in this growing town. I'll be at the same college, working in the same, old office with the same movie posters hanging on the wall. I know where I'm planning on going, or rather, staying. But knowing something doesn't stop the change from happening.
Steven Chbosky wrote it best in his best seller, The Perks of Being a Wallflower:
"Things change. And friends leave. Life doesn't stop for anybody."
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Another night to remember
I have a group of friends. In this particular group, somehow, we always end up having to run for something whenever we're all together. Tonight we ran for the car, lost in a parking garage, just trying to find our way out.
As dramatic as that sounds, it really wasn't. We're just easily lost and confused sometimes. Anyway, tonight was amazing. I was given the opportunity to go to "First Date" - a new musical at ACT Theatre in Seattle, WA - with three amazing women. I'm so lucky to have them in my life. There's even talk of a band in the making ... But that's a story for another day.
Honestly, I am incredibly blessed with the friends I have. They all have their particular places in my heart and my life and I wouldn't have it any other way. I've gone on so many crazy and amazing adventures this past year and each person has played a role in making each adventure what it was.
Isn't that what this year is supposed to be like - running around with friends, sometimes without a plan, just enjoying ourselves? It may have taken me a while to figure that out, but I'm glad I finally did.
As dramatic as that sounds, it really wasn't. We're just easily lost and confused sometimes. Anyway, tonight was amazing. I was given the opportunity to go to "First Date" - a new musical at ACT Theatre in Seattle, WA - with three amazing women. I'm so lucky to have them in my life. There's even talk of a band in the making ... But that's a story for another day.
Honestly, I am incredibly blessed with the friends I have. They all have their particular places in my heart and my life and I wouldn't have it any other way. I've gone on so many crazy and amazing adventures this past year and each person has played a role in making each adventure what it was.
Isn't that what this year is supposed to be like - running around with friends, sometimes without a plan, just enjoying ourselves? It may have taken me a while to figure that out, but I'm glad I finally did.
Libraries to visit
"The world belongs to those who read." ~ Rick Holland
"A room without books is like a body without a soul." ~ Cicero
"You know you've read a good book when you turn the last page and feel a little as if you have lost a friend." ~ Paul Sweeney
For those who know me, I am quite the bookworm. I always have, at the very least, two or three books going at once, only because there is so little time in the world and so many books waiting to be read. Right now I'm in the middle of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, The Collected Poems of Sylvia Plath by Sylvia Plath, Tokyo Vice by Jake Adelstein, and The Ballad of the Sad Cafe by Carson McCullers.
I have compiled multiple lists of places to go, things to do and people to meet in my lifetime. For an avid reader like me, a list of libraries to visit was inevitable. So, fellow bookworms, eat your heart out:
The New York Public Library
New York, NY
The Monastery Library
San Francisco Monastery and Church
Lima, Peru
Joanina Library
University of Coimbra
Portugal
Fayetteville Public Library
Fayettevill, AR
Geisel Library
University of California-San Diego
La Jolla, CA
The Long Room
Trinity College
Dublin, Ireland
The Library of Sorbonne
Paris-Sorbonne University
Paris, France
Radcliffe Camera
Oxford University
England
Shibo Ryotaro Memorial Musem library
Osaka, Japan
These aren't all of the libraries on my list - not even close. But they are some incredibly amazing places I wanted to share with you. If you're lucky enough to be graced with a sunny day today, pick up a good book and find a nice place to read outside. Leave your iPod and cell phone indoors and immerse yourself in a wonderful piece of literature. But if you're like me - living in one of the rainiest places in the world - sit yourself in a quiet corner. Curl up with a cup of tea, a blanket and your book.
Read. Exist. Be.
(All photos belong to their respective owners)
Beginning of the end
Spring quarter 2012 began on Monday. There's always a rush that runs through me at the beginning of every quarter. It's a mix of excitement and nerves.
Somehow, excitement has overtaken the nerves this quarter and I'm feeling ready for the new quarter. Maybe it's because I feel experienced enough in my field that I no longer need those nerves. Maybe it's because this is my last quarter as a high school student, my last quarter until I'm fully launched into the world of adulthood.
Sure, being in college the last two years has put me in that world. But after this quarter, the training wheels will be off and I'll be making my way through a world that makes no sense right now.
I've seen friends walk into that world and find success. I've also seen friends who are still wandering, lost in a world they weren't ready for. Everything that I've done and everything that has happened to me over the course of my life will come together in June to guide me out of the safe walls I'm hidden behind and into a world of chaos and wonder.
I've been told I already have the mind of a person in their thirties (although, that's debatable...). I'd like to think it's because I've experienced quite a bit. But understanding that there's still so much to see is one thing we can all learn, no matter how old you are.
Monday marked the beginning of the end of a chapter in my life. Soon it will be time to start writing a new one. When the time comes, I'll be ready. There are fears to be conquered and fun to be had. So let's get to it.
Somehow, excitement has overtaken the nerves this quarter and I'm feeling ready for the new quarter. Maybe it's because I feel experienced enough in my field that I no longer need those nerves. Maybe it's because this is my last quarter as a high school student, my last quarter until I'm fully launched into the world of adulthood.
Sure, being in college the last two years has put me in that world. But after this quarter, the training wheels will be off and I'll be making my way through a world that makes no sense right now.
I've seen friends walk into that world and find success. I've also seen friends who are still wandering, lost in a world they weren't ready for. Everything that I've done and everything that has happened to me over the course of my life will come together in June to guide me out of the safe walls I'm hidden behind and into a world of chaos and wonder.
I've been told I already have the mind of a person in their thirties (although, that's debatable...). I'd like to think it's because I've experienced quite a bit. But understanding that there's still so much to see is one thing we can all learn, no matter how old you are.
Monday marked the beginning of the end of a chapter in my life. Soon it will be time to start writing a new one. When the time comes, I'll be ready. There are fears to be conquered and fun to be had. So let's get to it.
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Preparation
Spring Break is coming to a close, leading me to the beginning of my last quarter of high school. I've passed my Senior Project and my credit requirements have been filled and completed.
Graduation is a scary thing. I'm staying at my community college, staying at home, staying in this same dreary town. Despite the things that are staying the same, it seems like everything is changing. In a way, even the things that are the same are changing.
Obviously, I've been thinking about graduation very often. It's quickly aproaching and there's no stopping it. My friends are spreading out across the country, we're planning final parties and get togethers and preparing for the end of our time in high school.
The day will come when we have to say our goodbyes and before we know it, high school will be a small piece of our histories. Right now, every detail feels important. In a way I think they are.
I'm wrapping up an amazing Spring Break full of some pretty memorable adventures. We finally had our scary movie night. There was cuddling in the rain at the river with some of my best friends. I was bitten by a dog (not too bad ... just a bit of blood). I crashed on a friend's couch, learned how to make galaxy nails, baked a cake and celebrated our impending graduation.
I'd say the last two weeks weren't too shabby. Next up: graduation.
Graduation is a scary thing. I'm staying at my community college, staying at home, staying in this same dreary town. Despite the things that are staying the same, it seems like everything is changing. In a way, even the things that are the same are changing.
Obviously, I've been thinking about graduation very often. It's quickly aproaching and there's no stopping it. My friends are spreading out across the country, we're planning final parties and get togethers and preparing for the end of our time in high school.
The day will come when we have to say our goodbyes and before we know it, high school will be a small piece of our histories. Right now, every detail feels important. In a way I think they are.
I'm wrapping up an amazing Spring Break full of some pretty memorable adventures. We finally had our scary movie night. There was cuddling in the rain at the river with some of my best friends. I was bitten by a dog (not too bad ... just a bit of blood). I crashed on a friend's couch, learned how to make galaxy nails, baked a cake and celebrated our impending graduation.
I'd say the last two weeks weren't too shabby. Next up: graduation.
Friday, March 23, 2012
Alive and well
Hello!
Well, I think I'm back. I gave up on blogging nearly one year ago but I've been thinking of starting up again. So here I am!
To be completely honest, I know some of my past blog posts have been very personal and exposing and quite frankly, depressing. And yes, I could have started another blog completely set apart from this one. But that really wouldn't sit right with me. Those posts, regardless of how upsetting they may be, are part of my past and you can't really erase your past.
So my dears, here I am - alive and well! I've changed the blog name, but not the content. My posts from here on out will be somewhat different from the ones I used to write. I'll be honest, true to myself and true to my passions and beliefs, but I'll go about it differently this time.
UPDATE on 5/24/2012:
I decided to take the previous posts off my blog as they are not things I wanted attached to the current blog. They haven't been erased because, like I said, you can't erase your past. But there was no reason for it to be plastered all over my blog. Thanks, loves!
Well, I think I'm back. I gave up on blogging nearly one year ago but I've been thinking of starting up again. So here I am!
To be completely honest, I know some of my past blog posts have been very personal and exposing and quite frankly, depressing. And yes, I could have started another blog completely set apart from this one. But that really wouldn't sit right with me. Those posts, regardless of how upsetting they may be, are part of my past and you can't really erase your past.
So my dears, here I am - alive and well! I've changed the blog name, but not the content. My posts from here on out will be somewhat different from the ones I used to write. I'll be honest, true to myself and true to my passions and beliefs, but I'll go about it differently this time.
UPDATE on 5/24/2012:
I decided to take the previous posts off my blog as they are not things I wanted attached to the current blog. They haven't been erased because, like I said, you can't erase your past. But there was no reason for it to be plastered all over my blog. Thanks, loves!
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