Wednesday 21 November 2012

SEASONAL ~ Through a Glass Darkly

Winter Reflections





 




The last of the amber and copper coloured leaves are falling fast. The Owl does not call on clear moon lit nights. Autumn has gone.

The bare trees reach out, leaning against one another and making spooky sculptures. Creaking in the night wind.











Winter comes with long thin icy fingers, the trees reflected in the windows.
Fog hangs in the air, and frost is upon the grass. When the rain stops.








This is a time for pretty things, bright baubles, and candles. 





Mirror with fairy lights


I like gathering old books to read over the holidays, mainly Fairy Tales and Ghost Stories. There is an old traditional in England of reading ghost stories aloud on Christmas Eve. Some of the oldest ones are the scariest. I've been reading The Violet Car by Evelyn Nesbit, (best known for her children’s books). The author of 'The Railway Children', was a great beauty in her day who was also known to turn her pretty hand to a ghostly tale. 

Evelyn Nesbit on a bear rug in her studio, 1901

The story begins with a paragraph that hooks straight away, beautifully written - and already haunting. When a nurse goes down to a remote farmhouse on the Downs to look after an elderly couple she discovers that their madness has a terrifying edge to it. And why is the old man haunted by hallucinations of a violet car?

'Do you know the downs-the wide, windy spaces, the rounded shoulders of hills leaned against the sky, the hollows where farms and homesteads nestle sheltered, with trees round them pressed close and tight as a carnation in a button hole?'

Do you have a favourite ghost story?




America has Thanksgiving between Halloween and Christmas. It is a holiday that has changed substantially over the years, but gratitude is a blessing.  After Bonfire Night November is a quiet month for me, taking time out to reflect upon the year that has passed and beginning to 'draw in' for the Winter. It is nice to nest and to be glad of home.



Further reading:

1. Corinthians 13:12 contains the phrase βλεπομεν γαρ αρτι δι εσοπτρου εν αινιγματι (blepomen gar arti di esoptrou en ainigmati), which is "For now we see through a glass, darkly." This passage has inspired the titles of many works.

2. Hutchinson - 50 Years of Ghost Stories

3. Virago - Book of Ghost Stories


19 comments:

  1. Thank you, I was hoping that you would mention that this was in Corinthians. And you didn't let me down! God bless you!

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    1. It's a favourite quote of mine, and very true. Glad you enjoyed it. x

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  2. As we move toward winter, it is time for the sparkly lights, the candles and the ghost stories. We've had foggy mornings, too. Something otherworldly about those mornings. Love this time of year. I will celebrate Thanksgiving tomorrow and begin my *sparkly* decorating the day after!

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    1. Snap, Do hope that you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We love the fog too, magical, unless you have to drive in it. x

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  3. We will begin to put our Christmas lights and decorations up on Friday, the day after our Thanksgiving! I so look forward to it every year. And here in the Pacific Northwest, US., we've had many foggy mornings so far this fall. Foggy and very chilly! I always remember the true meaning of the Christmas season, but i too love the sparkly, light filled ornaments and pretty things!

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    1. I look forward to seeing photos of your decorations. The Friday following Thanksgiving is a great time to begin! x

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  4. Ooh, that is a good ghost story photograph. It does look as if something magical is rising out of the pages! :)

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    1. It is a perfect photograph, but sadly not mine and I cannot credit it as do not know who created it. x

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  5. have a go at reading The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge...a children's story, totally mesmeric and one of those beautifully easy comfort reads

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    1. Oh, sounds marvelous, will look this one up. Thank you! x

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  6. I must check out these ghost stories! I love you photos and the content of this post! Suzy x

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    1. Thanks Suzy! Yes, we will all be reading spooky things this season .... Eek! x

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  7. A Christmas Carol by Dickens has to be my favourite ghostly tale or Susan Hills The Woman in Black...very scary...x

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    1. It is a classic that sets the standard. I love watching the old films of it on tv this time of year too. The Woman In Black is VERY scary! indeed x

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  8. Yes the last few blazes of gold are still hanging on in my garden! I'm looking forward to warm cosy nights watching christmassy costume dramas on the TV. That's what we do in england these days, well in my house anyway. ;)
    Jess x

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    1. Ours too! That, and sorting boxes of Christmas decorations with the help (!) of the cats.

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  9. absolutely love that mirror with the fairy lights and the red shoes!

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  10. What a delightful array of images. I'm especially fond of the endlessly precious kitty and that beautiful shot of Evelyn (it looks almost as though she was doing a Sleeping Beauty impression).

    Thank you very much for your lovely comment on my tartan outfit post today, I sincerely appreciate it.

    Wishing you a joyful holiday season,
    ♥ Jessica

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  11. I just discovered your blog and I love your photographs. Also your cats! I did want to point out that Edith Nesbit, not Evelyn, was the author of The Railway Children. Evelyn is the woman in your photo, indeed a great beauty but rather notorious in her time and definitely not an author of any note!

    Marty in Pennsylvania

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