Stardust

The Land of Might-Have-Been - Novello/Marsh

2021-07-27T08:36:00.005-03:00

The Land of might-have-been, such a beautiful music, sung by Jeremy Northam, disappeared from Deezer! But we still can find it at YouTube. "Gosford Park", by director Robert Altman, is one of the best movies I've seen!

And the lyrics, to sing together with Jeremy!

The Land of might-have-been

Somewhere there's another land
Different from this world below,
Far more mercifully planned
Than the cruel place we know.
Innocence and peace are there--
All is good that is desired.
Faces there are always fair;
Love grows never old nor tired.

We shall never find that lovely
Land of might-have-been.
I can never be your king nor
You can be my queen.
Days may pass and years may pass
And seas may lie between--
We shall never find that lovely
Land of might-have-been.

Sometimes on the rarest nights
Comes the vision calm and clear,
Gleaming with unearthly lights
On our path of doubt and fear.
Winds from that far land are blown, whispering with secret breath--
Hope that plays a tune alone,
Love that conquers pain and death.

Shall we ever find that lovely
Land of might-have-been?
Will I ever be your king or you
At last my queen?
Days may pass and years may pass
And seas may lie between--
Shall we ever find that lovely
Land of might-have-been?

28 May 2021 Holy Rosary

2021-05-29T04:07:00.017-03:00

Rosary Day 28: Our Lady Of Altötting in Germany

"During the month of May, the Church around the world is joining in a daily Rosary for the intention of the end of the pandemic, as well as a specific intention related to the various victims of the virus.

Each day of the month, a different shrine will lead the daily Rosary, according to local practice. The beginning and the end of the Rosary Marathon (May 1 and May 31) are led by Pope Francis. For today’s Rosary Relay, we will be at a place beloved by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, Our Lady of Altötting in Germany.

The Shrine of Our Lady of Altötting, also known as the Chapel of Grace (German: Gnadenkapelle), is the national shrine of Bavaria. Benedict was born in a nearby town, and considers the shrine his “spiritual homeland.”

The octagonal chapel that houses the image of the Virgin is the oldest Marian shrine in Germany, dating back to 660. The image is also ancient, possibly from around 1330. It is one of the images known as a Black Madonna, because of the dark color of the figures’ faces and hands.

The image is of Our Lady holding the Christ Child, and is about 26 inches high. Mary holds a scepter with a lily blossom in her left hand. The Child Jesus rests on her right arm and has a sphere representing his power as God.

Since the 1500s, the images have been richly decorated with crowns and robes bedecked in jewels.

A miraculous recovery in 1489 further popularized the shrine. A young boy who had been drowned recovered, after his mother laid his body before the image and prayed for a miracle. Many other miracles are attributed to Our Lady of Altötting’s intercession." (Aletea)

It was moving to say the Rosary at the Shrine of Our Lady of Altötting, prayed and sung with such devotion, simplicity and beauty.

Aletea

Allegri, Miserere Mei Deus - Choir of New College Oxford

2020-03-08T13:52:00.001-03:00

Am I in heaven? Such pure voices make us dream and think a better life is possible!

"Have mercy upon me, O God: after Thy great goodness.

According to the multitude of Thy mercies, do away mine offences.

Wash me thoroughly from my wickedness: and cleanse me from my sin.

For I acknowledge my faults: and my sin is ever before me.

Against Thee only have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that Thou mightest be justified in Thy saying, and clear when Thou art judged.

Behold, I was shapen in wickedness: and in sin hath my mother conceived me.

But lo, Thou requirest truth in the inward parts: and shalt make me to understand wisdom secretly.

Thou shalt purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: Thou shalt wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

Thou shalt make me hear of joy and gladness: that the bones which Thou hast broken may rejoice.

Turn Thy face from my sins: and put out all my misdeeds.

Make me a clean heart, O God: and renew a right spirit within me.

Cast me not away from Thy presence: and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me.

O give me the comfort of Thy help again: and stablish me with Thy free Spirit.

Then shall I teach Thy ways unto the wicked: and sinners shall be converted unto Thee.

Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God, Thou that art the God of my health: and my tongue shall sing of Thy righteousness.

Thou shalt open my lips, O Lord: and my mouth shall shew [show] Thy praise.

For Thou desirest no sacrifice, else would I give it Thee: but Thou delightest not in burnt-offerings.

The sacrifice of God is a troubled spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God, shalt Thou not despise.

O be favourable and gracious unto Sion: build Thou the walls of Jerusalem.

Then shalt Thou be pleased with the sacrifice of righteousness, with the burnt-offerings and oblations: then shall they offer young bullocks upon Thine altar."

This translation is from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.

Wikipedia

HEAL

2019-03-23T10:55:00.001-03:00

Healing...

"Heal" is a film by Kelly Noonan Gores about the power of the mind to heal the body. It's available on Netflix. "The documentary takes us on a scientific and spiritual journey where we discover that our thoughts, beliefs, and emotions have a huge impact on our health and ability to heal. The latest science reveals that we are not victims of unchangeable genes, nor should we buy into a scary prognosis. The fact is we have more control over our health and life than we have been taught to believe. This film will empower you with a new understanding of the miraculous nature of the human body and the extraordinary healer within us all."

What can we do to improve our health?

There are nine measures that were taken by people who had spontaneous remission from serious illnesses.

Radically Changing your Diet

Taking Control of your Health

Following your Intuition

Using Herbs and suplements

Releasing Supressed Emotions

Increasing Positive Emotions

Embracing Social Support

Deepening your Spiritual Connection

Have a Strong Reason for Living

To see the trailer click on "HEAL"

Click HEALTrailer

NOUS TE SALUONS Ô TOI NOTRE DAME - CHANT.

2018-08-26T11:30:00.001-03:00

Une très belle chanson pour notre mère Marie!

Couronnée d’étoiles

R. Nous te saluons, ô Toi Notre Dame,
Marie Vierge Sainte que drape le soleil,
Couronnée d’étoiles la lune est sous tes pas,
En toi nous est donnée l’aurore du salut.

1- Marie Ève nouvelle et joie de ton Seigneur,
Tu as donné naissance à Jésus le Sauveur,
Par toi nous sont ouvertes les portes du jardin.
Guide-nous en chemin, Étoile du matin.

2- Tu es restée fidèle, Mère au pied de la croix,
Soutiens notre espérance et garde notre foi.
Du côté de ton Fils, tu as puisé pour nous,
L’eau et le sang versés, qui sauvent du péché.

3- Quelle fut la joie d’Ève, lorsque tu es montée,
Plus haut que tous les anges, plus haut que les nuées.
Et quelle est notre joie, douce Vierge Marie
De contempler en toi la promesse de vie.

4- Ô Vierge immaculée, préservée du péché,
En ton âme, en ton corps, tu entres dans les cieux.
Emportée dans la gloire, sainte Reine des cieux,
Tu nous accueilleras un jour auprès de Dieu.

How to Get Rid of Neck Hump

2017-09-18T16:29:00.001-03:00

Great Video from "The Power Posture" at Youtube, that I found at Flor Martha's blog!

Meus Alfarrábios: Receitas e Notas sobre Quase Tudo: Posture Coach Shows How to Get Rid of Neck Hump (E...

Uma Flor Rompe o Asfalto -

2016-08-09T20:09:00.001-03:00

A poem by Carlos Drummond de Andrade

A Flor e a Náusea

Preso à minha classe e a algumas roupas, vou de branco pela rua cinzenta.
Melancolias, mercadorias, espreitam-me.
Devo seguir até o enjôo?
Posso, sem armas, revoltar-me?

Olhos sujos no relógio da torre:
Não, o tempo não chegou de completa justiça.
O tempo é ainda de fezes, maus poemas, alucinações e espera.
O tempo pobre, o poeta pobre
fundem-se no mesmo impasse.

Em vão me tento explicar, os muros são surdos.
Sob a pele das palavras há cifras e códigos.
O sol consola os doentes e não os renova.
As coisas. Que tristes são as coisas, consideradas sem ênfase.

Vomitar este tédio sobre a cidade.
Quarenta anos e nenhum problema
resolvido, sequer colocado.
Nenhuma carta escrita nem recebida.
Todos os homens voltam para casa.
Estão menos livres mas levam jornais
e soletram o mundo, sabendo que o perdem.

Crimes da terra, como perdoá-los?
Tomei parte em muitos, outros escondi.
Alguns achei belos, foram publicados.
Crimes suaves, que ajudam a viver.
Ração diária de erro, distribuída em casa.
Os ferozes padeiros do mal.
Os ferozes leiteiros do mal.

Pôr fogo em tudo, inclusive em mim.
Ao menino de 1918 chamavam anarquista.
Porém meu ódio é o melhor de mim.
Com ele me salvo
e dou a poucos uma esperança mínima.

Uma flor nasceu na rua!
Passem de longe, bondes, ônibus, rio de aço do tráfego.
Uma flor ainda desbotada
ilude a polícia, rompe o asfalto.
Façam completo silêncio, paralisem os negócios,
garanto que uma flor nasceu.

Sua cor não se percebe.
Suas pétalas não se abrem.
Seu nome não está nos livros.
É feia. Mas é realmente uma flor.

Sento-me no chão da capital do país às cinco horas da tarde
e lentamente passo a mão nessa forma insegura.
Do lado das montanhas, nuvens maciças avolumam-se.
Pequenos pontos brancos movem-se no mar, galinhas em pânico.
É feia. Mas é uma flor. Furou o asfalto, o tédio, o nojo e o ódio.

(do site A Magia da Poesia)

The Flower and the Nausea

Imprisoned by my class and my clothes
I go in white through the gray street
melancholy men, shopkeepers peer at me.
Should I continue until I sicken?
Can I, unarmed, be revolted?

Dirty eyes on the clock tower:
No, the time has not come for full justice
It is still the time of excrement, bad poems, hallucinations and hope
The poor time, the poor poet
Stuck in the same impasse

[In vain I try to explain myself, the walls are deaf]
Under the skin of words there are ciphers and codes
The sun consoles the sick and does not renew them
The things. How sad are things, considered out of context

They’ll vomit this tedium across the city
[Forty years and not a single problem
resolved, not even close]
Not a single letter written nor received.
All the men return home
They are less free but they carry newspapers
and decipher the world, knowing that they’ve lost it.

Crimes of the earth, how does it forgive them?
I took part in many, from others I hid
Some I thought were beautiful, they were published
Gentle crimes, that helped me live
The daily ration of error, distributed at home
The feral bakers of evil
The feral milkmen of evil

Set it all aflame, including myself
To the boy of 1918 they called an anarchist
[However, my hate is better than me
With it I save myself
and give at least a little faint hope]

[A flower rose from the street!
Far away they pass by, trams, buses, rivers of steel traffic
A flower, though faded
Evades the police, breaks the asphalt
Be completely silent, stop your business
I assure you that a flower rose

Its color is unnoticed
Its petals don’t open
Its name is not in the books
It is ugly. But it is truly a flower

[I sit on the ground in the country’s capital at five in the afternoon and lightly pass my hand over this frail thing.]
Beside the mountains, dense clouds swell
Little white points dance on the surface of the sea, startled chickens
[It is ugly. But it is a flower. It pierced the asphalt, the boredom, the disgust and the hate]
(site: Brazil for Poets)

Taking Race Out of Human Genetics

2016-02-05T15:51:00.000-02:00

The concept of race is not a scientific category

Science

In the wake of the sequencing of the human genome in the early 2000s, genome pioneers and social scientists alike called for an end to the use of race as a variable in genetic research (1,2). Unfortunately, by some measures, the use of race as a biological category has increased in the postgenomic age (3). Although inconsistent definition and use has been a chief problem with the race concept, it has historically been used as a taxonomic categorization based on common hereditary traits (such as skin color) to elucidate the relationship between our ancestry and our genes. We believe the use of biological concepts of race in human genetic research—so disputed and so mired in confusion—is problematic at best and harmful at worst. It is time for biologists to find a better way. (...)

Scientific journals and professional societies should encourage use of terms like “ancestry” or “population” to describe human groupings in genetic studies and should require authors to clearly define how they are using such variables. It is preferable to refer to geographic ancestry, culture, socioeconomic status, and language, among other variables, depending on the questions being addressed, to untangle the complicated relationship between humans, their evolutionary history, and their health.

(Science, 4 feb 2016)

For more information, go to the Science magazine article by authors Michael Yudell, Dorothy Roberts, Rob DeSalle and Sarah Tishkoff.

Blue Martian Sunset

2015-05-08T12:33:00.001-03:00

Sunset on Mars

On May 19, 2005, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit captured this view as the Sun sank below the rim of Gusev crater on Mars. This Panoramic Camera mosaic was taken around 6:07 in the evening of the rover's 489th Martian day. Because Mars is farther away, the Sun is less bright and only about two thirds the size seen from planet Earth. (NASA)

Image Credit: NASA/JPL/Texas A&M/Cornell

Rio de Janeiro 45º

2015-01-30T14:48:00.002-02:00

Tony Goes

I wish I could "Fear no more the heat o' the sun".

But how could this be possible if there's no rain,

we must save energy and the air seems to burn?

Christmas Mistery

2014-12-21T12:12:00.000-02:00

Merry Christmas!

On the Nativity of Christ

Today the Virgin gives birth to him who is above all being,

and the earth offers a cave to him whom no one can approach.

Angels with shepherds give glory, and magi journey with a star,

for to us there has been born a little Child, God before the ages.

(Kontakion, by Romanos the Melodist - 752)

Temoignage de Sophie

2014-12-19T21:29:00.000-02:00

Une belle histoire de courage, fidélité et foi.
Une vraie histoire d'amour.

Kids killed in Pakistan

2014-12-17T19:10:00.002-02:00

God is Good.
God is Merciful.
God doesn't reward murderers.
What does really move assassins that take the lives of God's creatures?

Let's pray for the mothers and fathers of the students killed in Pakistan.

You are my HoneyBunch Sugarplum

2014-09-22T12:08:00.000-03:00

You're my Honeybunch, Sugarplum
Pumpy-umpy-umpkin,

You're my Sweetie Pie
You're my Cuppycake, Gumdrop
Snoogums-Boogums, You're
the Apple of my Eye

And I love you so and I want you to know
That I'll always be right here
And I love to sing sweet songs to you
Because you are so dear

Downton Abbey clip

2014-09-09T09:35:00.001-03:00

Just a few more days and Downton Abbey will begin its season 5 in Great Britain. Americans shall have to wait until january 2015 to see the Dowager Countess in action. The clip below shows this gorgeous criation of Julian Fellowes and Maggie Smith giving some advice on relationship to her cousin Isobel.

Jep Gambardella's Party

2014-08-18T10:43:00.001-03:00

Scena di uno dei migliori film del 2013

Dr Sheik Umar Khan (1975-2014)

2014-07-30T12:18:00.003-03:00

Dr. Sheik Umar Khan contracted the virus ebola and died tuesday afternoon

The virologist treated more than 100 pacients at the hospital in Kenema, in Sierra Leone. He was the only specialist in viral haemorrhagic fevers the country had. Despite wearing protective gear, dr. Sheik Umar Khan was infected, dying less than a week after his diagnosis was anounced. Three nurses at the facility also died. They gave their lives to save others. Their sacrifice is moving and feed our faith in humanity, specially when there are so many people in the world who chooses to dedicate themselves to killing and destruction.

The Guardian published an interview with an MSF psychologist who reveals the trauma of dealing with the ebola outbreak for medics, cleaners and the families of the dead. Ane Bjøru Fjeldsæter also mentions the joy they feel when someone is cured.

The Whittington Family: Ryland's Story

2014-06-24T21:36:00.001-03:00

Whoopi Goldberg - Sister Act - Oh Maria

2014-06-15T13:23:00.001-03:00

What a lovely song for a lovely Lady!

7 En el Rosedal - Mercedes Sosa - Palabras para Julia

2014-06-15T13:13:00.001-03:00

We Are Venezuela

2014-03-09T11:07:00.000-03:00

The World Must Know Why People Are Protesting in Venezuela

An Alzheimers Request

2014-01-01T20:10:00.000-02:00

It seems easier to take care of children than help older people or even loved ones who have Alzheimer's Disease. Those are useful words to remind us to be patient with those in great need.

Do not ask me to remember
Don't try to make me understand
Let me rest and know you're with me
Kiss my cheek and hold my hand

I'm confused beyond your concept
I am sad and sick and lost
All I know is that I need you
To be with me at all costs

Please do not lose your patience with me
Do not scold me or curse or cry
I can't help the way I'm acting
I can't be different though I try

Just remember that I need you
And that the best of me is gone
Please don't fail to stand beside me
And love me 'til my life is done

Possibly, the wise author of this poem is Owen Darnell, who cared for his wife Esther while her memory was being erased by Alzheimer's Disease. After having a health problem, Darnell had to put Esther in a nursing home, where he visited her daily. He wrote a booklet called "A Room Without Doors" to help caregivers.

Giorgio Vasari et l'origine du dessin et de la perfection

2013-09-22T14:31:00.001-03:00

Vasari e l'origine del disegno e perfezione
Vasari and the origin of design and perfection

Giorgio Vasari

La plupart des écrivains prétendent que la peinture et la scupture furent trouvées par les Égyptiens; d'autres attribuent aux Chaldéens les premières figures en relief et accordent aux Grecs línvention du pinceau et de la couleur; mais moi, je soutiens que le dessin, ce principe créateur et vivifiant de la peinture et de la sculpture, posséda toute sa perfection dès l'origine des choses. Quand Dieu eut fait le monde et orné le ciel de corps lumineux, il traversa avec son intelligence la limpidité de l'air, descendit sur la terre et forma l'homme. Qui donc osera dire que ce modèle pétri par la main du Tout-Puissan n'offrît pas le type parfait de toutes les beautés que réclame la sculpture, et de la morbidesse et du choc harmonieux des lumières et des ombres que cherche la peinture?

Le divin architecte du temps et de la nature ne tira pas sans motif la première image de l'homme du limon de la terre. Il voulut montrer que la perfection doit sortir de l'imperfection. Ainsi voyons-nous les sculpteurs et les peintres corriger, effacer, et retoucher leurs ébauches avant de les amener au point qu'ils désirent.

(Giorgio Vasari, Vies des Peintres, Sculpteurs et Architectes - Préface de l'Auteur - Just Tessier, Libraire-Éditeur - 1847)

Michelangelo - Creation of Adam

I am aware that it is commonly held as a fact by most writers that sculpture, as well as painting, was naturally discovered originally by the people of Egypt, and also that there are others who attribute to the Chaldeans the first rough carvings of statues and the first reliefs. In like manner there are those who credit the Greeks with the invention of the brush and of colouring. But it is my opinion that design, which is the foundation of both arts, and the very soul which conceives and nourishes in itself every part of the intelligence, came into full existence at the time of the origin of all things, when the Most High, after creating the world and adorning the heavens with shining lights, descended through the limpid air to the solid earth, and by shaping man, disclosed the first form of sculpture and painting in the charming invention of things. Who will deny that from this man, as from a living example, the ideas of statues and sculpture, and the questions of pose and of outline, first took form; and from the first pictures, whatever they may have been, arose the first ideas of grace, unity, and the discordant concords made by the play of lights and shadows?

Thus the first model from which the first image of man arose was a clod of earth, and not without reason, for the Divine Architect of time and of nature, being all perfection, wished to demonstrate, in the imperfection of His materials, what could be done to improve them, just as good sculptors and painters are in the habit of doing, when, by adding additional touches and removing blemishes, they bring their imperfect sketches to such a state of completion and of perfection as they desire.

(Members translation)

Giotto

The Oldest Quartet in Existence

2013-09-10T19:58:00.001-03:00

The Oldest Living Quartet (Gaither Homecoming)

Robert Arnold, the tenor, is 93 years old. The others singers, from left to right, are Jake Hess, Ben Speer, Rex Nelon.

As it is in Heaven

2013-08-26T19:22:00.002-03:00

Gabriella's Song

Two years ago I saw a movie about a successful swedish conductor who suddenly interrupts his career and returns to his childhood village in Norrland. Despite wanting to be left alone he cannot resist the invitation to train the parish choir. There he has the opportunity of making an old dream come true: to open people's hearts with his music. That music I never forgot!