Your smile for today ~
"At a dinner party, one should eat wisely but not too well, and talk well but not too wisely."
~ W. Somerset Maugham, English Writer 1874 - 1965
(According to Martha Stewart, "The cocktail party is probably America's greatest contribution to the world of entertaining." )
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.
Dear Editor: I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, 'If you see it in the Sun it's so.' Please tell me the truth: is there a Santa Claus?
Virginia O'Hanlon.
The wise editor's thoughtful reply to eight year old Virginia led to one of the most famous editorial articles ever written:
Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except what they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! How dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance, to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.
Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.
You tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virgina, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.
No Santa Claus! Thank God! He lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.
~ Francis Pharcellus Church, The Sun, 1897. New York, U.S.A.
Virginia O'Hanlon.
The wise editor's thoughtful reply to eight year old Virginia led to one of the most famous editorial articles ever written:
Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except what they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! How dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance, to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.
Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.
You tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virgina, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.
No Santa Claus! Thank God! He lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.
~ Francis Pharcellus Church, The Sun, 1897. New York, U.S.A.
Friday, December 4, 2009
Dear Santa
Saturday, December 5th, 11:00 a.m. the jolly old fellow comes to Cayuga.
The Santa Claus Parade begins on Munsee St. S. at the J. L. Michener Public School. Follows Munsee (Hwy. #54) to Talbot Rd. (Hwy. #3). Turns left on Ottawa St.
There are numerous profiles of gift-bringers around the world. In Cayuga, the arrival of the bespectacled, whiskered, red and white clad Santa heralds the Christmas Season.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
New and Used Books
"New and Used Books/ Your Favourite Authors...," our ad reads. We are frequently asked by puzzled customers, "Are these new?" The Neat Little Bookshop prides itself on carrying only new and like-new books ~ never musty, smoky or mangled ~ so our books are easily taken as new.
Fortunately for our planet, there is an ever-growing popular philosophy of Recycle/Reuse/Re-read. (In addition, the nostalgic aspect of the lovely old book never loses its appeal.)
The ad ends with "The coffee pot's always on..." So come in, visit The Neat Little Bookshop and Go Green!
First Christmas Card
Today, on the first day of December, the first snowflakes and our first beautiful Christmas card arrived.
Parts of Ontario apparently broke a record this year ~ this is the first time since the '30s that there was a snow-free November.
Christmas in Ontario by Cheryl MacDonald describes the traditional country sleigh rides, church bells, singing, family gatherings around the Christmas tree, gifts and of course the festive turkey dinner.
Visit http://heronwoodent.ca/ for more Canadian stories by local author, Cheryl MacDonald. Books available at The Neat Little Bookshop.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Beowulf
Michael Walton of Cayuga has written what is arguably the best translation of the Old English epic poem, Beowulf.
Beowulf was the first major poem in a European vernacular language.
Many of us have seen the modern movie version of Beowulf's exploits in defeating the monster Grendel and fighting to his death with a dragon. Beowulf Anglo-saxon epic in modern English, by Michael Walton, is available in The Neat Little Bookshop. A beautifully bound, first edition hardcover that will excite the legend reader on your Christmas Gift list.
We will have much more on this author in the future. Visit Michael's extraordinary website.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)