A Poem for Every Occasion

June 6, 2011November 20, 2014 ~ Kate Wilson ~ 5 Comments

Yesterday we walked in the hills near Montornès. I was still struggling to clear my head after the journey back from Cornwall – is it age that makes this transition so much harder?
It was incredibly muggy and then at last the sun came out and we were walking downhill and there was birdsong, butterflies and this amazing yellow flowering plant with a strong heady scent.

Pep started reciting this poem,
La Ginesta, by Joan Maragall

La ginesta altra vegada                                  The Ginesta again
la ginesta amb tanta olor,                               The Ginesta with such a scent,
És la meva enamorada                                  Is my lover
que ve al temps de la calor.                            Who comes when it is hot.
Per a fer-li una abraçada                                To embrace her I climbed up the hill
he pujat dalt del serrat:
de la primera besada                                      And from the first kiss
m’ha deixat tot perfumat.                               I was left totally perfumed
Feia un vent que enarborava,                         There was a wind shaking the trees
feia un sol molt resplendent:                          The sun was very bright
la ginesta es regirava                                      The Ginesta was turning furiously
furiosa al sol rient.                                          As the sun laughed
Jo la prenc per la cintura:                               I took her for my belt
l’estisora va en renou                                     The scissors yet again
desflorant tanta hermosura                             Deflowering such beauty
fins que el cor me n’ha dit prou.                    Until my heart told me it was enough
Amb un vímet que creixia                              With a Willow which grew
innocent a vora seu                                         Innocently alongside
he lligat la dolça aimia                                   I tied the sweet soul mate
ben estreta en un pom breu.                           Into a tight bunch
Quan l’he tinguda lligada                              And when I had finished tying her
m’he girat de cara al mar…                            I turned my face to the sea
M’he girat al mar de cara,                             I turned to the sea my face
que brillava com cristall;                              Which shone brilliantly like crystal
he aixecat el pom enlaire                              And raising the bunch high in the air
i he arrencat a córrer avall.       I started to run down the hill.

Here are some students putting it to music – budding Manels?

In Transition

June 5, 2011November 8, 2014 ~ Kate Wilson ~ 3 Comments

Settling down here again.
Yesterday we went on the bikes to see the Fira de L’Ascenció in the Parc Firal. I hadn’t thought of having a celebration of Jesus’ ascension to heaven but it is a big festival here. One of the important aspects of the ascension is that Jesus levitated to heaven in his mortal body – he didn’t change first into something more spiritual. When you think of this it must have been an incredible and miraculous sight!
The Fira de L’Ascenció was much more down to earth.
We were greeted with stetson wearing line dancers and Irish music – Whisky in the Jar. There were hundreds of people selling things from cars to wooden sheds to sausages

And more sausages

As usual I found the idea of the Fira much more agreeable than the crowded noisy reality with some poor farm animals being gawped at and tickled by hordes of children.
There was a lovely stall selling honey from the Pyranees but we’d had enough of the commercial side of L’Ascenció by then

So we went back into Granollers centre and watched the dismanting of giants in the Porxada

Nestled behind the displays were rows of tidy tents housing the Granollers acampada.
Calling for something different – for change!

Virtual Vermut

June 3, 2011November 8, 2014 ~ Kate Wilson ~ 5 Comments

Tonight I invite you to a quiet vermut on the sofa in front of the TV at home.
I travelled back from Cornwall early this morning after an overnight drive and no sleep and now am far too tired to go out anywhere!
It was strange that I had an attack of pre-flight nerves before getting on the Ryanair plane this morning. You know, when you have waves of irrational thoughts which include ‘get off the plane! get off the plane now!’?

Waiting to board, the man behind me was restless and edgy – was he an attacker?

It took a long time to get the plane ready to board – had there been a warning?

Across the isle was a security guard who was permitted to carry a suitcase beside her and she kept looking back over her shoulder to check the passengers – did she have a gun?

My brain was going crazy with panic warnings and my heart was pounding as they closed the doors and we seemed to taxi forever along the runway. You know how you watch the air hostesses for reassurance? They seemed to be behaving normally so I closed my eyes and told myself it was lack of sleep that was putting me on high alert.
Of course it was all fine and we had a smooth flight and arrived on time to the now habitual burst of applause from the other passengers and the toot diddle toot toot of Ryanair because it was yet another punctual flight. I cried on landing and felt better for the release of tension.
Do you ever get afraid for no reason on a plane? Once that door opens in your mind then it is very hard to close it against the flood of terrifying images that threatens to drown you. How do the flight attendants manage to do it day after day?
Well, it’s nice to be home and lovely to sit down with a drink and feel my body begin to relax again and feel safe. Vicki Cristina Barcelona is on the television in Catalan so I think I will watch it now and slide gently into the language again . I don’t know if Bodhi Chicket is having a virtual vermut today but it’s worth going over there to take a look and see what she is thinking about.
Fins Ara

Swallows

June 2, 2011November 28, 2014 ~ Kate Wilson ~ 4 Comments

I usually leave the van in here when I leave Cornwall

But it will have to survive a summer outdoors.
There are new residents building a nest in the garage and I don’t want to risk disturbing them nor provide a ledge for cats to lie in wait.
It’s the first time they have nested in there, using the broken window at the front and with an emergency exit through an air vent at the back. Hopefully when I get back here they will have a large family preparing to fly south.
Sorry there are no swallow pictures – I waited for a long time at the window but they chattered loudly on the wires and waited equally patiently for me to go away!

Two homes – one heart

June 1, 2011November 19, 2014 ~ Kate Wilson ~ 4 Comments

My last night. Cleaning the house. Saying goodbye to the dogs – yet again. A visit from Dandelion my beautiful ginger cat, he now lives next door but must have known that I am leaving soon.
Thinking back over the long list of things that I have done in the last two weeks all I regret is that I didn’t go for more walks with Bonnie on the coast path or lie down more doing nothing with Blue who has been too wobbly to go further than the bottom of the lane.
Except when we went to the vet!
After we came out she took off down to the promenade and insisted on a long walk beside the sea