Sunday, September 26, 2004
Thoughts about people, places and events
The seasons. The signs of fall are everywhere. Although the daytime temperature still climbs above 80 degrees F (27 C), there is a feeling that soon such days would be behind us. The mornings are taking longer to show lightness and the darkness arriving earlier and earlier in the evening. Looking out of the window I can see that the leaves of the gingko trees along the street are beginning to turn; tinges of yellow becoming visible in the midst of the green. Time soon to forget about the air conditioner and think of relighting the pilot of the gas furnace to prepare for the onset of cold weather.
Then there are other things. It is time for hearty foods on the table-----stews; roasted winter vegetables; soups that warm the belly. The occasional gimlet or a shandy in the afternoon replaced by a cognac at night. Running shorts and tee shirt giving way to tights and long-sleeve jerseys. Foraging for wild mushrooms instead of sitting on a bank watching the bobber of the fishing line or wading in a stream and casting flies. The crispness in the air and clear blue skies, more often seen than in the summer months, make hiking in the foothills very enjoyable. There is the ritual of planting bulbs and sweet pea seeds.
Hindi (the official language of India) is not my mother tongue. It lacks the sweetness and cadence of Bengali and Urdu. But the Hindi for fall is "patjhar". It means falling leaves. A lovely word.
Correction 11/2/07: Although used by many Hindi-speaking Indians, patjhar is an Urdu word.
"When it is autumn do we get spring weather,
Or gather may of harsh northwindish time?"
----Ezra Pound, "Silet"
Weapons of war. The images of tanks and grenade launchers are so ugly and brutish. Modern technology has created products that make our life better, as well as highly efficient instruments of death. When it comes to killing of innocent civilians is there a difference between suicide bombers and laser guided bombs? Yes, the laser guided bombs are much more destructive. The reports about dead and injured have a numbing effect. Some people cease to care; others are in denial. So much violence in parts of our planet. Just a few megalomaniacs responsible for much of it. The lies they use to justify their actions are sickening.
And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
----John Donne
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"There never was a good war, or a bad peace"
----Benjamin Franklin
