Passing on the spreader of love award

As you will know if you have been reading my blog (do people read these things?) PatR has given me this spreader of love award. This is a puzzle for me 'cos I'm not making any cards "jus bloggin" and I've got to find someone to pass it on to. As I'm doing this I'm listening to some cheerful music emanating -phew- from Paul's Crafty Blogocks blog and I've decided he certainly deserves this award for cheering up everyone, for introducing me to so many great blogs, for teaching me how to use publisher properly, for being a hardworking teacher (what a class to be in!), for loving climbing what an endless list. I am posting the following poem for him and I hope it will tempt him to visit my blog again



THE CRAGSMAN

IN this short span

between my finger tips on the smooth edge

and these tense feet cramped to the crystal ledge

I hold the life of man.

Consciously I embrace

arched from the mountain rock on which I stand

to the firm limit of my lifted hand

the front of time and space :

For what is there in all the world for me
but what I know and see ?

And what remains of all I see and know,
if I let go ?

With this full breath

bracing my sinews as I upward move

boldly reliant to the rift above

I measure life from death.

With each strong thrust

I feel all motion and all vital force
borne on my strength and hazarding their course
in my self-trust :

There is no movement of what kind it be

but has its source in me ;
and should these muscles falter to release
motion itself must cease.

In these two eyes

that search the splendour of the earth, and seek

the sombre mysteries on plain and peak,

all vision wakes and dies.
With these my ears

that listen for the sound of lakes asleep

and love the larger rumour from the deep,

the eternal hears :

For all of beauty that this life can give

lives only while I live ;
and with the light my hurried vision lends
all beauty ends.

Geoffrey Winthrop Young
I'm not and have never been a climber but I love this poem and so does my DH and his friend whose 91st birthday we celebrated today. They were climbers in other days and when you love something it never leaves you. Off to Paul's blog now then I will make cards-definitely.