January 4, 2006

A Place to Stand

The Shieldmaiden

Last sunset, last twilight,
last stars of December.

And so this year comes to an end, a year rich in the small, everyday occurances of the earth, as all years are for those who find delight in simple things.

There is, in nature, a timelessness; a sturdy, undeviating endurance, that induces the conviction that here we have a place to stand.

All around us are the inconstant and uncertain. The institutions of men alter and disintegrate. Conditions of life change overnight. What we see today, tomorrow is not. But in the endless repetitions of nature -- in the reoccurrence of spring, in the lush new growths that replace the old, in the coming of new birds to sing the ancient songs, in the continuity of life and the web of the living -- here we find the solid foundation that, on this earth, underlies at once the past, the present and the future.


- by Edwin Way Teale, from his book "Circle of the Seasons." This book is a poetic nature journal. The entire book is incredible and expressive. read it. love it.

6 comments:

Big P said...

Thank you for your reflective thoughts that help keep us centered.

Lynn Bruce said...

Beautiful.

Unknown said...

I agree, beautiful and very easy to relate to. Very descriptive. It puts the actual picture of a new gorgeous day in my mind.

Laura Kathryn said...

Clairest that was comforting and beautiful. It made me cry.

Big Bang said...

[quote]Last sunset, last twilight,
last stars of December.

And so this year comes to an end, a year rich in the small, everyday occurances of the earth, as all years are for those who find delight in simple things.[/quote]

This bit is from an Edwin Way Teale quote I have written down for use in a Christmas letter. Is the rest his as well I am wondering?

beatrice said...

Thank you so much for pointing that out, Shellie. Teale's work always inspires. This is an entry from "circle of the seasons." the book is majestic and expressive. i suspect one is supposed to read it chronologically, but i am reading all the summer ones this winter, because his writing makes you feel as though you are there.