cult(ure)

Kirstenbosch 26th of December 2010: Civil Twilight rocked !

post- Christmas food- hangover-belly - laziness !

Maria and Julie

Some more photos of the Kirstenbosch summer concert

beautiful evening

Lyrics to : Letters from the sky (Inge and my favourite track, which they played last)



One of these days the sky's gonna break
And everything will escape,
and I'll know
One of these days the mountains are gonna fall
Into the sea,
and they'll know
That you and I were made for this
I was made to taste your kiss
We were made to never fall away
Never fall away
One of these days letters are gonna fall
From the sky
telling us all to go free
But until that day I'll find a way
to let everybody know
That you're coming back,
you're coming back for me'
Cause even though you left me here
I have nothing left to fear
These are only walls that hold me here
Hold me here, hold me here

One day soon I'll hold you
like the sun holds the moon
And we will hear those planes overhead
And we won't have to be scared
We won't have to be,
we won't have to be scared
You're coming back for me
You're coming back for me
You're coming back to me


s t u n n i n g !
Maria

favourite words....

I've been spending some time with my darling- guests from the snowed-in- island-country:

beautiful photo taken on Julie and Steve Fallon's wedding day in Greenwich.

so after plenty of eating and swimming in Paarl ( thanks Marcelle ) and holding baby-Joshua and congratulating Sascha and Martin on the expectancy of their little pink-foot, we headed into the cool milieu of retail.... Century City- Mall.
I suspect it is the 6.30 am- runs Steve and I are battling through, which is not only strengthening my legs and lungs, but also my will power.

The shop-windows held no pulling-power whatsoever for me.

Steve needed some swimming shorts as they are flying to Mozambique for 5 days and then attending a wedding in Durban early Jan 2011.

In Canal walk; I love the book shops. more than anything. I have recently rediscovered some old favourite words, the way you discover an old jersey or favourite (but forgotten)towel that you love(d).

these are:

Suave ; Gallant Warrior; graceful carelessness of the highborn.

Thanks to the books I browsed through at Canal Walk's exclusive books.

My British friends were looking for (Durban-friendly) wedding-attire and I had no desire to be tempted by pretty dresses and skirts and place mats and trays, so I provided them with a quick orientation and then settled at a little table in Exclusive Book's resident coffee shop.

I was particularly impressed by the Rumi- writings I selected.

Listen to the beautiful foreword by Coleman Barks: " Rumi quickens the grief and the delight of being alive. He celebrates the glory and the indignity.

There are many words for grapes in the world's languages.

Rather than argue about names for the mystery, he crushes them into one wine."
also by Rumi:

Lovers find secret places inside this violent world; where they make transactions with beauty.

Christmas fever

Hot hot hot

Maggie and I attended the 8am service and each congregation-member received these beautiful stars, lazer-cut "ligdraers" or "bearers of light", which ties in nicely with a monthly electronic -newsletter I receive from Paulo Coelho (famous-author of the Alchemist)
warrior of light

I hung mine on our tree.
I love my tree.




extract from Paulo's most recent writings:

The Aleph

William Blake used to say that we can see the infinite in a grain of sand and eternity in a flower.In truth, a simple moment of inner harmony is enough for that to happen.That is where the great problem resides: we almost never allow ourselves to realize that the present moment in itself holds all the glory. Sometimes, it expresses itself in a completely casual manner.

You are walking in the street, sit in a certain place and suddenly the entire universe is right there. The first thing that comes up is a huge desire to cry – not for sadness, neither for happiness, but simply to show emotion. You know you are comprehending something, even if you are not even able to explain it to yourself.

I hope that you have had such a moment recently. What a gift.

Anyway- back to the current climate: festivity and beautiful food and a full belly!
Lovely time was had by all.
A hot South- African Christmas was wrapped up in Camp's bay promenade,
Pepper club on the beach.
and at home with a braai. bliss. happy smile.
feeling full ( in all possible definitions or nuances of the word)

and counting....

so excited for my friends to arrive on BA0059....at 9am.
It is normal for me to have difficulty sleeping if I'm this excited and this morning
the garden benefited by an early- watering, my bed was made (also not a given) and the coffee plunger was taken out... ready to welcome the Europeans to home-brewed freshness.

Christmas... I've been battling to find the Christmas "place" in my heart... that childhood optimism and excitement and the magical retelling of the Baby in the Manger.
The shops were driving me mad and every evening I'd think "phew, thank goodness that was the last trip to the mall" I would discover something else I missed / lacked.

I'm happy that whatever I've forgotten will stay forgotten.
My guests and dear friends are coming in a few hours and my youngest-sister will join us in the evening. so there is nothing to do about whatever I've forgotten.

Talking about forgotten and leaving it be.
What didn't happen this year that you feel: oh well, the year is over and I didn't do / get/ bake it and you know what: its fine. I'll just do without it / leave it / put it to rest.

I've tried to think of a couple of things that fall into that category.
"tough sh%t" I didn't do it / make it / buy / acquire and that's fine.
It was surprisingly difficult... I obviously live in a very "to do"-orientated frame of mind.

Perhaps that is a good and challenging new year-resolution...to adopt an attitude of "Toughies" I didn't get to it/ do it.. sort of an anti-ambition....
the idea is growing on me already.

- I didn't lose 5 kg
- I didn't sort out my mental-clutter
- I didn't relocate to Wellington or London
- I didn't do an interior decorating course
- I didn't learn photography - skills (see below from Sarah Kaye and Georgianna Lane for inspiration)

pictures courtesy of Michael Woolley and Sarah Kaye representation

and with these sexy sultry images I leave you to go to the airport to welcome some (almost -snowed-in ) friends.

somewhere

There is no
letting go.
Even your absence
touches me.
The new moon
is not gone;
she hides
her face
in the night.

Ivan m granger

2003

no moon

somewhere there is my answer...
duality of life
to the longing and the contentment
the sun and the moon
the push and the pull

to wanting you here
and wanting you more



Maria
Dec '2010

one two three snowflakes

It is Christmas-time and isnt the world a remarkable place... I'm sitting at home with all the doors and windows open to let a breeze in to cool off the house and my cousin is stuck at Heathrow due to heaviest snowfall.

This will probably be a Christmas remembered by a multitude as a white black Christmas.

Blanc du Noir.

Not all the money in the world can get you to your loved ones if you are stuck in an airport due to Mother-Nature.

So what about me and my loved ones... do I appreciate them? or do I take them for granted?

Take a careful look at your family and friends.

Hug them, read them poetry, bake them something hearty and just be with them. Really be.

Wishing you a Christmas full of "being" (as opposed to "doing")

M

The Literary Yogi: Jacques Crickillon, Billy Collins and Krishna

go read / browse:

The Literary Yogi: Jacques Crickillon, Billy Collins and Krishna

simplicity in this busy frantic season of excess. Scriblings for an angel

a familiar hole

a part of me

a forever-gap

indistinguishable

and then you started to

fill it

heal it

clumsy with the wholeness...awkward

how can one grieve a former-crippled heart ?

Maria

of profound Sunday-evening-quietness

Late Prayer

Tenderness does not choose its own uses.
It goes out to everything equally,
circling rabbit and hawk.
Look: in the iron bucket,
a single nail, a single ruby --
all the heavens and hells.
They rattle in the heart and make one sound.


Jane Hirshfield (taken from the lives of the heart)





Photostock-artwork property of Mandy Lynne
for more inspiration and detail on the Person of the week: Yolandé Malan... read post on 26th November.





have a happy evening

dandelion and pretty things and marriage

“Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions”

Rilke

Spring has returned.
The Earth is like a child that knows poems.

Rilke

For those who have set a good example, an honest example
of how tough and enduring
and brilliant
and absolute a long
marriage is.
And how you grieve when one is gone
And how your tears turn into diamond-pebbles
paving the way to the
Peaceful-presence
of eternal
song & love.
to Charles and Miemie

"There are so many fragile things, after all.

People break so easily, and so do dreams and hearts."

-Neil Gaiman

Friday which feels like Monday

I almost have that feeling you sometimes get when you wake up at 6am on a Saturday-morning and realise that bliss upon bliss: you don't have to get up.
Since yesterday was a public holiday, I feel a margin of that happy/light feeling as the weekend is lying ahead and though today feels like the start of the week, it is happily the end to it.

My legs are not (yet) sore from yesterday's mountain-climbing, so I am savouring the flexibility.
My head does not hurt (since I had no wine yesterday) and I am savouring the clarity.
My house is being tended to, Sanna is here, my saving angel, and I am savouring the order.


So then , more on the Table Mountain walk/climb/ scramble.
We set off at 7.45am at the circle where I usually go down towards toward Camp's Bay.
Johann and Du Toit were there. Du Toit's old-lecturer Prof Theron, Prof's friend from Holland, Peter. The group also included Inge, Thomas Theron and his soon-to-be wife ( March 2011) Dalena as well as Rina ( vet who had her own practice for 10 years and suddenly finds herself having to start all over again )
and her partner (also an academic giant, but I never walked behind him so I don't really know what his field is)
Oh, and a couple who has that solid-vibe of "we've been -married- for- a- long time". I'll get their names from Johann next week.

pictures taken during break-times announced by Prof Theron and me graciously complying.

fantastic views and quiet beautiful vegetation... fynbos... by midday we were at the top... post a bit of rock-climbing ( Thanks Thomas and Johann for kind assistance ) and scenic -viewing.

amazing piece of floral kingdom condensed in a 15 km radius.

(Johann and Du Toit below)

and of course my blond angel: Inge (who carried the snack-bag ALL THE WAY)

there were times where I felt that I'd be walking till the day I die... just putting one foot in front on the other and seeing more rocks, mud, prickly bushes, high climbs, till forever.. like there IS NO top of table Mountain... like it is a myth.
My days will be spent climbing higher and higher and then its cold and the cool mountain breeze makes you reach for your top and then the sun comes out later and you take it off again but you are constantly stretching your calf-muscles till they're white hot.
. . and still you are not seeing the top of Table Mountain, just Clifton becoming smaller and smaller and some cloud-wisps breathing down the folds of the mountain to cool you down.






and then we heard a siren... which reminded me of an airport-boarding call... and I knew that the cable car service had reopened. I was told hours ago that due to the unfavorable wind, it was not operating. I ran to the Cable- car office.. willing to offer R200 for the ride down. The sense of accomplishment and joy and victory and strength. really really wonderful.

I'll do it again with this crowd.

"All good things are wild, and free."

-Henry David Thoreau

Cheers, M

Day of reconciliation:- me, Diemersdal and the Mountain

Wednesday evening on the most beautiful wine farm in Durbanville, Diemersdal. Celebrating the life and adventure of Chantelle and Rochelle Fourie who are leaving on their world-tour soon. Beautiful farewell occasion, Thanks Rita. splendid and stylish.

This powerful sisterhood decided that life is only to be treated with the utmost passion and dedication, which naturally follows that they would treat every dream as a possibility and a potential "tick" item on some years' list of things to do. Well this is one most people dream of (fleetingly) during a stressful moment at the office or 2am-feed (This one is for you Marcelle)



photos courtesy of Alain Cajeux



But I'm getting side-tracked...
Chantelle resigned from Joshua- Doore (where she was very happy and contributed tremendously to the family- hard work- hard play culture) and her younger sister Rochelle resigned from the Edcon-group.
Neither were bored at all with the city of gold, but realised that certain dreams required a little more dedication.
So: two resignations, two around- the-world- trip itineraries later, we were hugging the special two souls who is setting off to do it. NIKE moment: JUST Do It.

Their house in Gauteng got a lick of paint and some TLC, the tenants are lined up, the bags are packed and the mosquito-cream and mascara is becoming vanity-friends.
Some unlikely combinations of make-up-bag-contents for this stylish city-duo.
Some never-before- introduced creams and potions will be living in close proximity for the next 12 months.... and they've had to meet the weighty passport as well as tummy-medicine.... not the usual office-eyeshadow and lipstick for this trip.

stunning evening, no wind, beautiful food and even-more beautiful company

Then after significant amount of the famous Diemersdal Sauvignon Blanc, I slept for 5 hours and got up to face the adventure. Outdoor adventure.

Me and Table Mountain.
Reconciled. ( 16th of December is a bank-holiday in SA )
I understand its strength and power and grit and rocks and geraniums and boulders and its grace.
and I understand that I am unfit.



more photos and info to follow.