Strife of Life
With golden bracelets and silver bells
for hundreds year gone past
We will our strife
not hidden nor bent
sustain our meagre life.
Airs and Graces: Types of Contact
Social interactions are interesting. At reunions, people act one of three ways.
1. Speak when spoken to.
2. Act themselves.
3. Put up a glass exterior, filled wit politeness and distance.
I would say that I fit in the first of the three, only speaking when someone else enquires, and even then, mostly about them and never about me.I wonder which of the routes is the best philosophy for life; to be true to yourself or to use a facade. There are times when I've seen both used successfully, but they balance the scales equally in my mind. I hesitate to choose a victor.
This entry comes after a family dinner, but after a week of contemplating on my distinct lack of social graces. I need to focus on honing my social skills, plain and simple. At one point I was on top of it all, but now I feel my skills have dwindled away..
I just wish I knew where to begin.
The Monster Within
Forgiveness is a complicated concept. I'm not unforgiving, and yet, I'm one to hold a grudge. A lot of things are condemned by my examining eye, but only a few poignant specific "crossed the line" moments nudge me from my usual cool collected patient demeanour to one who is subject to fiery rage and anger. I'm not one to loose my cool, it's the patient side of me that forgives the little misgivings you or someone else may hold. And yet, after a moments pause, a delicate feather on the scales may swing my patience and composed nature skyrocketing down into oblivion. It was the straw that broke the camels back, that causes my burning rage to consume me, a build up of tiny flakes that become the avalanche of my emotions.
Much to the surprise of those unsuspecting, there are wild fiery passionate emotions that burn within my soul, waiting to be tapped and released, but my patience and rationality, combined with paranoia, conceals them deep, hiding them under layers of sand like a forbidden treasure chest of passion.
Rage is a terrible thing, once unleashed it clouds all other judgements, yet the same can be said of lust, desire and pain. Of love. The trade-off for tying up the beast of rage in order to remain composed and rational, is to forbid all strong burning emotions from breathing, suffocating them within.
Sometimes I wonder whether the trade-off is worth it, whether there should be no fear from being true to your emotions, not concealing them with an air of calm complacency. But then I remember anger, and rage. And wonder whether the trade-off is favourable after all.
British Museum!
If you are anything like me, the prospect of a summer where free-time is in abundance, and a distinct burning passion for the Ancient Egyptians, then the prospect of a visit to the British Museum is the most amazing idea yet!
With the help of my handy camera, I have decided to share all 400 a sample of my most beautiful photographs with you!
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| The British Museum! |
When first arriving at the museum, I was astonished at just how busy the museum appeared to be, with an abundance of tourists on the museum grounds, it made me wonder just how busy the interior would be!
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| Religion and Ritual small pieces. |
The first sign of Ancient Egypt, a burning, scorching, obsessive passion of mine, was of a small set of humble pieces, that sat there idle, looking dusty and dull. These proud artefacts from millennia gone by lacked the vibrancy and colour that I had honestly initially expected, but their sheer age and symbolic nature exceeded any short-comings, and this was just a taste of what was to come!
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| Ptolemy I - Great General of Alexander the Great |
The first magnificent bust of a highly esteemed Egyptian was this quite simplistic statue of Ptolemy I, a Great General who served Alexander the Great and influenced Egyptian society greatly. What struck me about the bust, was not only the simplicity of it's design, but the symbolic nature this creates. His body is strong and sturdy, his features cleanly drawn but friendly, and his headdress prominent and bold. All these features spark a great deal of interest from me, my imagination gallivanting, as much as I yearned to stand gaping, admiring the piece in a spaced-out vacant manner, I could feel the next piece calling me, wanting my attention. So I moved on.
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| Courtyard Architecture! |
After diverting away from the exhibition room I made my way into the courtyard, nice and airy with marble flooring. The cool airy nature of the courtyard was a strike contrast to the escalating summer temperatures outside!
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| Amenhotep III - Pharaoh of Egypt |
It was then that I saw a doorway, and beside it was the bold and big statue, guarding the doorway, serving as a hint to what treasures we may find inside!
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| Fragment of the Rosetta Stone |
The moment I left the cool marble courtyard and entered the doorway into what I can only describe as an Ancient Egyptian cave of wonders, I was immediately drawn to an item that hid behind crowds of people, each desperately trying to see this most precious of items!
Once I spotted a gap in the crowd, I squeezed myself in and to my astonishment, was met by a cold black slab, inscribed in a third hieroglyphics, a third demotic, and a third Ancient Greek. This was the infamous Rosetta Stone, a gem in archeological history, standing firm in a cage of glass surrounded by people eager to read it's inscription. With a quick snap of the piece, I rushed out of the crowd and my heart inflated like a balloon with helium, and tears began to reach my eyes, as I witnessed the wide array of Egyptian artefacts that prominently decorated the room.
The variety of the exhibition was immense, with grand and carefully engraved mighty columns,
Slabs of carefully inscribed hieroglyphic text, simple and bold, recording history for it's readers,
to prayers painstakingly engraved around thick strong tomb walls, designed to shelter the greatest of greats from the torments of the afterlife,
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| Ramesses II - Ramesses the Great |
to the bust of the king of all kings, Pharaoh of all Pharaohs, greatest and most highly regarded leaders of his era, Ramesses the Great, who's gigantic bust towered over all others, and who's presence inspired outpourings of honour and high regards, even to this day. So high is his influence and reputation, this ancient ruler from years gone by receives royal dignitaries greeting him when his mummy travels to foreign lands, and poets who sing his name in their works!
And on the pedestal these words appear:
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
[Percy Bysshe Shelley]
The legend that is Ramesses the Great, or Ramesses II as he was formerly known, was my most sought after item in the entire exhibit, to see an image of the great man.. after seeing this bust I felt there was only one more thing to do...
It's Mummy Time!
Royalty..
Cats!
And even the poor, poor simpleton!
Walk in the Park!
Day one with my new camera, my skill level in photography is still pretty low,
however I think some of these pictures came out rather nicely.
The surface of the pond reminds me of marble, shining.
View from the bridge.
Two birds nibble the greenery.
Two birds of different species, behaving identically.
The king of the pond sits upon his throne.
Even with sparse grass, they search for food.
Old tree, now a stump, sits beside the pond, watching time fly by.
Rhythm of Life
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What is the purpose of life if those that you love are lost.
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What is the purpose of life if those that you love are lost.
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I'm stuck in an infinite limbo, lost of control, helpless, with both the powers of eternal despair and beautiful joy pulling on the heart-strings of my emotions. There is so much beauty in life, outweighing all else. But yet, I find myself inevitably realising, that time is just fickle. Permanency is an idea, imaginary but comforting, giving a false sense of warmth and security in a chaotic world. Yet the truth is that the world breathes in rhythms, the cycles and flows of life are not meant to remain constant. The world and everything within it's boundaries are designed to pulse, sometimes spinning off in a tangent, never to intersect our lives again.
The beauty of life is not in what we have, but in what we once had. After all, when death befalls us we become merely skin and bones, wrapped loosely in decaying garments, our bodies gently decomposing urging to once again join the flows of earth to begin the cycle of life once more. What becomes of our conscience, our spirit, our essence, our soul, this truly no-one knows. We remember not our pasts, and know not our future. We are in a stuck in the infinite limbo of time, shining and pulsing like a star, destined to die a thousand deaths once more.
Share the Love!
I feel amazing, I feel beautiful, I feel healthy and happy. I’m enjoying life. There’s so much love in my heart, love for my family, love for my friends, love for my life. I want to share this feeling with everyone, so long as they breathe! Life is such an amazing thing, so joyous. If you love life, you’re truly alive. If you don’t, your mind is a corpse, waiting for your body to join you. Everyone should love life, maybe we think we do, but do you really? There’s so many good wonderful lovely beautiful things in life, one heart can not hold it all!
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