I could not have told you who wrote it. I could not have told you the writing from which it sprang. But I could never forget this powerful one-line sentence of eight words: A thing of beauty is a joy forever.
Such a simple but compelling thought. It rings with truth, made more rich, more fervent, with time.
It was written by John Keats and first published in 1818. Two hundred and one years ago, the poem in which it was ensconced for all time began with those enduring words.
The poem is entitled Endymion and is based upon a Greek myth, the details of which are largely irrelevant. It is remembered for this one line, this one overwhelmingly accurate thought, that a thing of beauty is a joy forever. The wordsmith worships such successful writing.
I have a small decorative piece I bought in Southeast Asia fifty years ago. It is a tiny, delicate balsa wood carving of a village. It is encased in glass on both sides, no more than six inches by four inches, by one inch deep. It has pagodas, and cranes standing on one leg in a watery area. Trees stand out against an open background. This was an inexpensive item. How I managed to keep it intact for fifty years is a miracle of itself.
I’ve had this item around for all of that fifty years, always somewhere near me, on a shelf, or in the bathroom, or by my desk. Somewhere I would see it every day. It has gone largely unnoticed by others, but for me, it has always been my friend – sitting there projecting its silent beauty to any who care to look more closely at it.
It was one of many similar to it. Found in little shops which had a business area in the front and a living quarters in the back, this item was a typical piece of Asian art, mass produced and sold largely to tourists or soldiers. Although mass produced, it was likely carved entirely by hand, the work of an artisan who painstakingly created each one of these decorative items.
I marvel at its grace and simplicity.
The person who produced it probably made hundreds like it, perhaps thousands. To the shopkeeper who bought it and resold it, this was merely a piece of commerce. For many who might have bought it and kept it around as a trinket, perhaps it was no more than that. But none of that defeats the beauty this piece and others like it contain.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. It resonates with those who will take the time to see it. How often do we miss beauty every day because we do not stop long enough to partake of it?
There’s an old saying. Stop and smell the roses. There is visual beauty in the rose, but it is the fragrant, poignant aroma of the rose which draws us to it beyond the picture it creates in our mind. What would the rose be without the sweet smell to accompany it?
Whether simple carvings or nature’s bounty of flowers, these things of beauty are all around us, waiting to be enjoyed by us, if we will take the time to see them.
Copyright 2019, Jim “Pappy” Moore. All rights reserved.
"Beauty" - Google News
December 15, 2019 at 09:53PM
https://ift.tt/2stnOUS
A Thing of Beauty is a Joy Forever - I could not have told you who wrote it. I could not have told you the writing from which it sprang. But I could never forget this powerful one-line sentence of eight words: A thing of beauty is a joy forever.... - Gilmer Mirror
"Beauty" - Google News
https://ift.tt/34EsyFy
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "A Thing of Beauty is a Joy Forever - I could not have told you who wrote it. I could not have told you the writing from which it sprang. But I could never forget this powerful one-line sentence of eight words: A thing of beauty is a joy forever.... - Gilmer Mirror"
Post a Comment