No.202

WISE MEN SAY

Man is the only animal that laughs and weeps; for he is the only animal that is struck with the difference between what things are and what they ought to be.
(William Hazlitt)

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THROUGH THE CAMERA LENS

An Edwardian schoolroom.
It's difficult to count the pupils but I think there may be more than 50.

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By the beginning of the 20th century every child in Britain was entitled to a basic education. The accent of course was on the three Rs, but geography and history were important as well, and in some schools 12 year olds were beginning Latin.

Part-time schooling was common in certain areas. Where it was necessary for children to earn money for the family budget, those pupils attended school in the morning and went to work in the afternoon, or vice versa.

Many women in impoverished circumstances continued working after marriage. Some went out scrubbing and cleaning for wealthier folk, and others, staying at home, took in washing.

The people who could afford domestic help were those who had their own shop or business, doctors, teachers, lawyers and the clergy.

Some workers were fortunate in having very good employers. An example was the Cadbury factory in Birmingham, where the owners built houses, schools, libraries and churches for the workers and their families.

The “top” class of people were the aristocracy of course. Their way of life, which seemed to be a continual round of parties, balls, theatre outings, hunting, fishing and shooting, would experience a serious upset in 1914 - a setback from which it never fully recovered.

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JOHN'S GALLERY

Sleeping Girl with Cat
by Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919)

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POETRY FOR PLEASURE

Daffodils
by William Wordsworth (1770-1850)

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed - and gazed - but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

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Thanks to DeereK13 for this slide show.
After watching it though, I played it again pausing on each picture.



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A QUOTE FOR 80 PLUS

The secret of staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly and lie about your age.
(Lucille Ball)

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Now online
PIANO PLAYTIME
http://pianoplaytime.blogspot.com

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