Purple Passages with a Fish & a Kiss, March 2014 Edition
Winter
Winter lies too long in country towns; hangs on until it is stale and shabby, old and sullen. Willa Cather, My Antonia
If winter comes, can spring be far behind? Percy Bysshe Shelley “Ode to the West Wind”
Gardens
The garden is one of the two great metaphors for humanity. The other, of course, is the river. Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
Grief
In God’s garden of grace, even a broken tree can bring forth fruit . . . . The greater the grief the fewer the words. Pastor Rick Warren on The View: Friday, Dec. 7, 2013
The way to love anything is to realize that it may be lost. G. K. Chesterton
When a loved one becomes a memory, the memory becomes a treasure. Author Unknown (viewed on Kathy Pooler’s website, January 27, 2014)
Einstein
(Quote on education attributed to Einstein but disputed by some sources.)
SUCCESS and HAPPINESS
Success is not the key to happiness, happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing you will be successful. Dr. Albert Schweitzer (Quoted in Daily Devotional: The Word for You Today, Dec. 2013–Feb. 2014.)
Dear Reader: You may have noticed I have included only one garden quote today.
Can you add a quote or a thought about gardening or beauty?
Can you add any other quote to the themes this month?
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Plain and Fancy 
Quotes from our greatest men in science always surprise me as they are not heady, nerdy, obscure, or lofty. For example, and I’m quoting from memory because they are so simple and easy to remember: “Coincidence is His way of remaining anonymous.” A clue that Einstein was a man of faith. I love this. And from Thomas A. Edison, “Opportunity is hard work dressed in overalls.” So practical. Imagine Edison dressed in overalls like the rest of us. These men were not just men of science but letters too, in their ability to capture just the right words, 20th century Renaissance men.
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And we can pass them around for ready-made aspiration the 21st century. Thanks for your timely additions, Georgette! You are always on the mark.
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“I appreciate the misunderstanding I have had with Nature over my perennial border. I think it is a flower garden; she thinks it is a meadow lacking grass and tries to correct the error.”
– Sara Stein, My Weeds, 1988
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A choice quote from a green-thumb herself, always with blooms or foliage year-round outdoors and in. You inspire!
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Whether he said it or not…I love the Einstein quote 🙂
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We have him forever linked with the theory of relativity, but I guess he was human too–fancy that!
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I’m in sunny St. Augustine this weekend and loving the taste of spring!
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I assume you are either going into or coming out of spring break–yes? Relax and enjoy! You definitely deserve it after all those lesson plans and paper gradings.
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Marian – I absolutely love working in the yard. The quote I will contribute is “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” To see the method to my madness (how it relates to gardening), simply follow this link: http://wp.me/pP1C5-1aE
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You love the natural world, I know. Your quote on beauty is a classic. Now I’m off to check your link on gardening!
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I will add a quote from a California farmer, Tom Willey: “One blessing of the farmer’s life is the inescapable recognition that one’s daily bread is a gift over which we exercise much stewardship but little control.”
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I hear a chorus of farmers agreeing with you, Dolores. Thank you! I appreciate your addition. I’ll add it to my collection
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Great post! I love the quotes you chose.
“A garden to walk in and immensity to dream in–what more could he ask? A few flowers at his feet and above him the stars.” -Victor Hugo, Les Miserables
And of course, the entire book and musical, The Secret Garden. 🙂
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Flowers and stars, the near and the far-away, images to treasure. Thanks for the Victor Hugo quote. I am sure you read The Secret Garden as a kid. The illustrations, I remember, are unforgettable in the original edition. Thanks for stopping by, Merril.
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Waiting for my garden to emerge from the snow. What a winter it’s been. I’ve always known that I could transform any difficult feeling by digging it into the earth. I love the Einstein quote, no matter who actually said it.
The poet Rainer Maria Rilke’s epitaph: “Rose, oh the pure contradiction, delight, of being no one’s sleep under so many lids.”
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Thank you for adding the Rilke quote, and it’s an epitaph too–wow! I keep lists of quotes everywhere: “Purple Passages” on the menu bar of my website, on my desktop, framed scripture verses around the house, on the window-sill. With such conflict and violence in the world, it is good to pass along memorable quotes.
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