GREEN SKY WITH WHITE STARS

“Fresh smitten by the morning ray,
When thou art up, alert and gay,
Then, cheerful Flower! my spirits play
With kindred gladness:
And when, at dusk, by dews oppressed
Thou sink'st, the image of thy rest
Hath often eased my pensive breast
Of careful sadness.”

               William Wordsworth, To the Daisy First Poem,1802

Last week, as the weather was hotting up after the recent long spell of cold and rain, the grass fields were becoming luscious green and speckled with white daisies.

On our walk, a little girl in a bright yellow frock ran to the young woman sitting at a bench under the big leafy maple tree at the edge of the field. The woman was looking intently at her phone. The girl had a handful of these white flowers. She put them all in woman’s lap and exclaimed “Mummy, I have picked some stars for you.”  Both started laughing and hugging.  They soon became busy in making a daisy chain.

I was impressed by the child’s imaginative metaphor. The large field WAS indeed looking like a vast expanse of green sky with bright stars. Not only that, just like stars they were arranged randomly in clusters like constellations! The daisies in grass fields are a common sight but I have never perceived the whole scenario in this wonderful, exalted way.

I always loved these small bright flowers. I keep delaying mowing of our lawn just to keep the daisies blooming for a bit longer. These flowers close their petals at sunset and open looking fresh in the morning when the sun comes up. That is why someone looking fresh and full of energy in the morning (after a good night sleep) is said to look “as fresh as a daisy”. “Whoops-a-daisy” is a common exclamation used after a stumble or a gaffe. It comes from a phrase used in 1800s “ups-a-daisy” used to encourage a child to get up after a fall.

The name daisy itself comes from the old English "daes eage," meaning "day's eye." The long white petals opening like eye lashes revealing the bright yellow circular disc in the centre.

In fact daisy is a mysterious flower. Each flower consists of hundreds of flowers. Each white petal is a flower in itself and so is each pinpoint yellow grain in the central disc! Daisy is a composite flower just like The Sunflower to which it is closely related.

In various cultures Daisies have come to symbolize innocence, purity, freshness, demureness, beauty and humility. No wonder William Wordsworth penned four poems exclusively on Daisies!

 “A nun demure of lowly port;

Or sprightly maiden of Love’s court,

In thy simplicity the sport

Of all temptations;

A queen in crown of rubies drest;

A starveling in a scanty vest;

Are all, as seems to suit thee best

Thy appellations.”

William Wordsworth, To the Same Flower Second Poem,1802

 

FENCE : NATURE = GREED : BENEVOLENCE

On Christmas Eve, we were watching a thriller on the TV in the lounge and suddenly there was a big thud. It gave us all a start. I looked out and to my horror; five panels of our fence had fallen on the driveway. It was very windy and raining. We could not go out and do anything so we continued to watch the film. As soon as the film finished we went out and tried to lift the panels but we could not. The panels are heavy and they had become heavier with thorough soaking by the continuous rain for the last few days.  With Christmas and New Year, I do not think we can get any workman to fix these in a hurry.

This fence is not really for any protection, no one is trying to encroach on our garden or stealing our plants but still not having a fence made us very uneasy. May be it is just because we had become used to seeing the fence all the time since we moved in this house some 20 years ago  and it had become a habit, a part of the norm.

Alternatively, maybe, it is something deeper in our psyche.

The desire to put a fence around ones' property is so universal. Not just the humans but also many of the animals do it.  We all carve out our little spaces so as not to feel insignificant in this vast Universe.  We try our best to individualise our surroundings, mark little territories to impose our pathetic sense of possessiveness and self-importance.

Nature is benevolent and does not approve of this. It tries to remove the barriers and make everything available to and for all. The fences fall, the houses collapse, the towns turn into jungles and the countries vanish from the map but we still jealously erect our fences and try to keep a bit of this vast universe just for ourselves. We grab bigger and bigger spaces and to protect it erect higher and higher fences.

If everyone had their fare share of space, based on need rather than greed (innate desire to possess more) there will be no need for fences. However, in a capitalist society with its high emphasis on the individual’s material achievements, it is a futile dream. Inequality in terms of material possessions does produce envy and societal discordance. The fences are here to stay.

 I have to go now and look in the Yellow Pages to find a builder.

Note: With the help of our guests who came to celebrate Christmas with us, we managed to lift the fence and temporarily fix it, thus averting the need to get a builder immediately.

However banal it may seem but the feeling that "my space is secure" is back. Now I can enjoy the rest of the festivities. Happy New Year to you all too.