A feather in my blog

Well it's that time again and this week I've been researching the link of feathers. Calvino started his memo on Exactitude by talking of the ancient Egyptians 'exactitude' symbol being a 'light feather called Maat, goddess of the scales.' So this left me with the vagueness of not knowing how light the feather was? A humming bird feather does not weigh the same as an ostrich feather. Do all feathers from the same species weigh the same? So it turns out that in fact the goddess wears an ostrich feather in her head.
This sent me on another strand that of the actual symbolism of a feather and how it can weigh so heavily on us. In 1914 Admiral Charles Fitzgerald founded the Order of the White Feather. This was supported by people of note such as the writers Mary Ward and Emma Orczy. The society would send letters that included a white feather, to men who they considered cowards for not going to war. http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/FWWfeather.htm
In 1902 A.E.W. Mason wrote The Four Feathers. This book has been made into films many times and is a very powerful story about friendship and betrayal and all because of the 'White Feather.' The weight of a feather is not exact, as it is not just that of its physical weight but also that of its psychological weight that must be considered. Then there's the superstition that surrounds feathers a peacock feather is considered bad luck to have on stage for actors. It is thought very unlucky to have the feathers of a Peacock within the home or handle anything made with them. This is possibly because of the eye shape present upon these feathers i.e. the Evil-Eye associated with wickedness.On my travels through the universe that is Google I came across this band Wolfmother and a track called White Feather. I love it, I've never heard it before and now I am a fan. It reminds me of the music I used to listen to when I was a teenager. Yes, this was a long time ago but its never to late to learn new things, is that not what Calvino and Kundera are telling us.

Fairies, astrology and geology

Well here I am week two and still struggling with the techno stuff. I think I've mastered how to post a picture but the video is still a bit beyond me. However the good news! No more bald spots. I'm still finding Calvino and Kundera confusing but I think perhaps that is the point. I'm reading Calvino and just as I think I get where he is going, off he goes chasing another strand. He's been talking about fairies, folklore, astrology and all things between. He talked about his star sign being a force behind his writing and creativity. Naturally I had to check mine out. So first I got my birth chart done. One of the questions asked is, what time were you born? So naturally I asked my Mother. Her answer, "I don't know after eight days and nights in labour and a caesarean I didn't care." So I put don't know as they didn't have a box for mother too knackered to notice. My star sign is Sagittarius, half horse half man (that probably accounts for my hind quarters) and my element is Fire. My birthstones are Tanzanite a blue/purple mineral - Zircon (a bit like diamond but not as expensive) and Turquoise which is the most interesting and the oldest of the known gem materials. It is thought to have powerful metaphysical properties and is also used by such ancient societies as the Apache Indians and Ancient Egyptians. I must say for myself it is Turquoise that I've the strongest connection with as there is something that draws me to it. I love the colour purple so that is where my Tanzanite connection comes in. My ruling planet is Jupiter. I looked at the planet on You Tube and found the it to be surprisingly beautiful and the music playing on the video is 'Jupiter' from Holst's Planet Suite. The other clip is taken from NASSA and is the actual sounds of the planet. The sounds of theare haunting, this is the planet communicating with us. My Chinese sign is the Rat and my element is Metal, I find that Chinese Astrology is more nature based and for me more accurate and interesting. The Chinese treat the body, soul and spirit as the whole of a person. In their medicine and traditions they go into so much more depth than we do. Oh, now I'm the one going off following different strands. It must be catching. When you look at both the Astrological signs I can see certain elements of me in them. By applying the open mindedness of Kundera and Calvino there are many more strands in my future that I can follow.
I believe there's a link with crystals, nature and folklore this leads on to the water colour by Arthur Rackham of Titania. This is one of many illustrations he did for A Midsummer's Night Dream by William Shakespeare. This connection comes back to that of last weeks blog and our continuing search for something other, something that will keep us alive in memory or in spirit. It's not just children that believe in fairies.'...there is enough (evidence of fairies) already available to convince any reasonable man that the matter is not one which can be readily dismissed..' THE COMING OF THE FAIRIES bySir Arthur Conan Doyle.
If we close our minds and believe that this is impossible we will never really know, but open them and how many worlds within this one will be open to us? I have just read Once by James Herbert whose novel is all about the balance of the natural world, fairies and folklore are integral to the protection of our planet. They are the planet's voice.

When you look at the planet Jupiter and think of the view that the Astronauts have of Earth from their new viewing window, you have to think of the force of mother nature. It would be foolish of us to think that we are it. There is much to be said for the Inca and Egyptian philosophies and for those such as the Apache Indians. Are we that naive to think that we are the only ones. That we are it!
If there is one thing that I have learnt so far from Kundera and Calvino it's that being open to everything, to every possibility is one of the most important tools for a writer.
Without imagination we have nothing.

When I look at the picturesw of Jupitor I am reminded of a summer holiday collecting coloured sand on the Isle of Wight and making pictures with the various shades and colours of sand. Jupitor looks just like a coloured sand orb. ANOTHER STRAND TO BE EXPLORED.