Reflecting on a few blog themes over December.
The Firewood Poem
By Lady Celia Congreve.
Beechwood fires are bright and clear
If the logs are kept a year,
Chestnut’s only good they say,
If for logs ’tis laid away.
Make a fire of Elder tree,
Death within your house will be;
But ash new or ash old,
Is fit for a queen with crown of gold.
Birch and fir logs burn too fast
Blaze up bright and do not last,
it is by the Irish said
Hawthorn bakes the sweetest bread.
Elm wood burns like churchyard mould,
E’en the very flames are cold
But ash green or ash brown
Is fit for a queen with golden crown
Poplar gives a bitter smoke,
Fills your eyes and makes you choke,
Apple wood will scent your room
Pear wood smells like flowers in bloom
Oaken logs, if dry and old
keep away the winter’s cold
But ash wet or ash dry
a king shall warm his slippers by.
Start of December saw the finalisation of our daughter’s move from a two bedroomed house into a four bedroomed one. Yesterday’s late evening FaceTime call had my daughter reflecting on how fantastic this year’s Christmas experience was for them all. Four children and two adults finding space a blessing. All the October to end of November applied chaos to getting the move done and dusted was suddenly, in my eyes, all worth the efforts.
December was, and still has, long periods of dizziness and discombobulated function. I think my inner ear is in a bit of crisis. Fingers crossed it will settle, get fed up and go away. My nurse’s, well now ex-nurse’s, diagnostic brain cannot self analyse the symptoms to pinpoint a certain diagnosis in reality. But it certainly feels as if some horrible virus or maybe dodgy semi circular ear canals are to blame.
December brought a few blog scenarios.
Frankie the Fella, kitten to cat but yet still a kitten in vibe nature.
A re-visit to photography and seeking new negative film developing pathways with use of natural products to be offered by nature’s gifts.
YOU CAN TAP ON ANY SMALL PHOTOGRAPH WITHIN THE BLOG TO ENLARGE ITS IMAGE. CHEERS!
A plan started with a Dream Map journal scenario to plan a synergy of my songwriting and recording each song (already recorded in parts) all anew starting in January. A CD and Bandcamp platform aim which involves some form of artistic inclusions. Hence fountain pens, dip nibs and photographic considerations for the presentation of video, site presentations/advertising and the CD cover and lyric booklet needs.
Receiving a book from my wife regarding a perceived lonely status. Staying in at home, alone, for very large extensive parts of the year. And actually three and a half years since retiring in fact. Which, in reality, is born from my introverted nature. I think I am pretty self motivated enough to stay sane and can claim an inner calmness in this outlook. The book’s content has my reflective senses feeling ‘I feel comfortable and inherently okay in all of this ‘on my own’ situation actually. Do I miss the chaos of career choice in nursing? Nah!’.
Writing a bit of poetry and prose on some blogs was nice. Gave ideas into application of using some for songwriting lyrics. A different rhythmic ideal to apply melody and sing spatially to.
Had a brief revisit to looking over my pottery making days. Shame I never took photographs of the different stages of development over the decade plus. They could have shown my various stages into ceramic adventures. The latter year pieces were very strange, yet very satisfying. I had been influenced by blocked layering and decorating akin to Oceanic/South Pacific tribal art/deity pieces.
Other blogs? Well, I wrote a few on positivity and its role in reflecting, outlook and subsequent healing whilst doing so, putting up the Christmas decorations with more focus because my Nan would have approved, making decent coffee in earnest, the Gray Summers’ WordPress photography site revisited and gaining a few followers (Thank you), spoke of intentions to re-record my songs from this coming January, and I also put on this WP site a few of the recent recordings of unfinished songs.
ONE OF THE SONGS BELOW.
All instruments guitars, keyboards, etc. and vocals by Gray Summers. Some percussion instrumentation from the GarageBand pre-recorded library. But I had a go at playing the bongos!
Oh, And Christmas CD listening. Bought five Christmas albums of Kate Rusby’s music and played all of those mostly. But eclectic other choices too. So a veritable listening extravaganza from about two to three weeks before and up to Christmas Day. Actually….it would be nice to go see some gigs of Kate Rusby’s next year. And especially the Christmas Winter tour. Looks well received on YouTube evidence.
And, as the Fireside poem links to….. a blog about getting scammed with a bulk log purchase, having to order a load more from a different supplier (far too many) and a subsequent five and a half hours experience of ‘getting the logs into the log store’! I felt like I was negatively blog subject moaning, so I took the post down and shoved it into draft. The year should always both start, contain a vast amount of positivity and certainly end positively.
So, December blogs were a bit diverse.
And the icing on the cake, of course, was from all you fellow bloggers. Not only those wonderful exchanges in the comments and replies on my blogs. But your own blog contributions and the fantastic reads over the year that I had from all your own subjects. So cheers for that. Much appreciated.
And introvert nature can, as below shows, be a quietly positive experience. Thank you all and a Happy New Year.
Gray Summers 
Gray, you live such a rich and full life. I know it hasn’t always been easy, but the way you see things and what you care about shows you live it with all your heart. it’s a real joy to follow you and learn from you.
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Thank you cookie. I suppose losing my brother Kev, when he was 21, made a huge difference and impact really cookie. Subconsciously it has probably been living life in the lyric I wrote back when. ‘Well boys, it’s time to leave this show. And I hate to see us part like this. And I hate to think of what we might have missed’. So, you kind of set out in life to make sure there are inclusions that you do not miss out on. As Kev missed out on.
Also. You yourself cookie will find fantastic positive energies and opportunities ahead that will change you either subtly or substantially. They could be just around the corner or a bit and a half down the line. But, they are definitely there to be found and you will recognise them as labels stating ‘for cookie’ because they will have your personality awaiting to be written into the stories as they unfold. Like Santa’s gifts this Christmas and those of long ago, they will always belong to you. And you can always share the gifts you receive with those close to you and others too. Cheers cookie. Thank you as ever.
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Gray, I agree with Cookie. I appreciate the impact and pain losing your brother has had – I lost me son 7 years ago. To me he will always be 27, I get your comment about all Kev has missed out on. The bright side to the pain is I now focus on me. I have expanded my interest, revisited old interests. I doubt I would have engaged in these interests with the enthusiasm I have were it not for my loss.
Best wishes for a happy new year.
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I remember your writings on your heartbreaking episode of loss. Also your honesty in the avoidance of that situation from others at times. Your experience did make an impact on myself, because it was your son. And I too have a son and could never imagine such loss. Also, in reading your thoughts, I reflected in how I applied my own thoughts to what I have shared over the years regarding my brother too. These times, like Christmas and other landmark events, are not the only times that memories exist. They are present in most of days we live. And yes, we carry on investigating life because we are able to do so. And it is a way of giving honour to what they were also part of. I would love Kev to be at the end of a phone call and come play drums on the songs. Even write them with me. But also to spread his naughty but nice nature and influence my children and grandchildren to live life with the adventurous spirit he himself possessed. Although, I believe that through the Summers’ family characteristics, they already do. Just as you and I do too Danny. All the best and have a wonderful New Year. Nice Throwback Thursday BTW. I remember the original blog post. Casein!
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A wholly poignant and beautiful post, Gray. I love the Lucy Cavandish book and your pottery wizard! Oh! You are the pottery wizard!
Your poem is lovely too. So much going on here/there. Love that you heard all good news from your daughter and that moving contributed to their Merry Christmas! More space always helps, I think. Room to grow. Room to breathe.
I am thankful for our friendship and connection to cookie here. Wonderful to think of cookie in Brooklyn and you across the pond. Somehow the logistics seem close. Not really close but close in vibe perhaps. Silly me.
Looking forward to lots more music in 2025! It seems weird to say THAT number though! Ha! I once never thought we would all be here after the year 2000!
Hope your ear situation improves! Richard has had that going on too for several weeks now, and he grumbles about it. He’s tried many things, but he isn’t a good patient. We’ll see! Cheers!
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I enjoy the blog positivities given and received Sheila. You can’t display dishonesty either. Just state what your heart feels. Thankfully, working alongside people during the nurse and sign language roles gave more than I was attuned to when a self centred musician/potter. I witnessed strength and resolve in others, when in the nurse/interpreter roles, that was both admirable and humbling. When a musician or potter it was self succeeding single mindedness. That is not to mean I was insensitive to others at all. Just driven with self purpose.
But nowadays with exchanging and sharing all the emotive areas of life as an older guy, it makes you so much more calm and realistic in outlooks. You see weakness and strength in others because me/myself has weakness and strengths too. So share them both with others. You also lose that situation of depending on others to sort you out when the going gets tough. Like the lyrics that I wrote in the ‘18 years was 50 years ago’ song. ‘What once was is now has been. So drag yourself into the light’.
It kind of makes you realise that you don’t have to sit back and think that the world owes you a favour because you have a tad of talent yourself. You start to recognise that others that are contributing to the arts and life’s stories are absolute gems too. Was I guilty of self promotion? Not really at all. But I did believe it was written in the stars that my way was the way to focus to gain success. When I listen to music, look at poetry, read others’ blogs, etc. nowadays, I can see a light that shines differently. Amazing artistry and stories to read that exist in people with bucketloads of talent. So it’s great to exchange views with everyone that gives you a buzz and vibe. We all encourage each other to brighter outcomes I suppose.
Like my daughter’s house move. It took every ounce of our energies to get that move sorted. Emotions were run ragged by the ‘powers that be’ and their stupidly difficult rules and regulations. Far deeper emotionally than what you originally imagine as to the hoops you have to jump through. Despite the self illness I have felt after the successful end result was realised. You still find satisfaction in the positives of, as you say, ‘more space always helps’. That ‘space’ Sheila was an absolute treasure to what they were used to. Claustrophobic is exactly what was. So the all round Christmas vibe and chilled smiles on FaceTime, due to the new relaxation possibilities, give so much pleasure that the struggles over the months are simply wiped away in one single swoop.
Cheers Sheila.
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Oh! And sorry to hear that Richard is suffering too. It isn’t a very nice feeling at all as he understands. Waking in the morning and realising upon sitting upright that another day will develop into simply ‘Treading softly’. Hope it diminishes for him soon.
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Thank you, Gray!
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All so true, Gray. All washes away in a single swoop. Everything Resolves to Gratitude. ❤️
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