AUGUST
"We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light."
- Plato
Scroll for this month's art episode.
Welcome to August.
Today's episode hinges around a discussion of wisdom and its value, particularly in relation to the much-needed awareness of belonging to a much broader human story; we are only ever in context.
Today also features the famous poem, "God's Grandeur," by Gerard Manley Hopkins.
My mother whispers in the night
Oh, come back home and I'll hold you tight
No more fear and no more pain
No more city noise running through your brain
Only the far-off hiss of the daily train
Bringing those long gone back home again
Come back home and I'll hold you tight
And everything will be alright
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
You're the friend of those who seek what's good
You're the friend of those who seek what's good
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
I travelled far, alone, from her
Rebellious and self-assured
With only stars for company
And stoic skies to comfort me
And even friends and lovers asked a fee
And my soul lost all vitality
And I thought of her face, warm and pure
And acquiesced to home's allure
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
You're the friend of those who seek what's good
You're the friend of those who seek what's good
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
She took me in her open arms
Said, "Now you're here and safe from harm.
I knew you'd come back here to stay;
I knew you'd fight for your own way.
Now you're longing for, oh, that day
When every tear is wiped away
Your beauty's fled, and where's your charm?
But all you need's your jagged heart."
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
You're the friend of those who seek what's good
You're the friend of those who seek what's good
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
Lady Wisdom, lead me home
I Will Grow Old
I will grow old like my mother's mother
I will grow lines like the roads I've travelled
I will grow old like the weathered willow
I will stand tall then fade away
I will grow old like my mother's mother
I will join the hidden in the ground
I will grow quiet like all who've left us
The same wind will erode the dirt that will bury me
Wisdom:
We Are Only Ever in Context
God's Grandeur
Gerard Manley Hopkins
The world is charged with the grandeur of God.
It will flame out, like shining from shook foil;
It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil
Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod?
Generations have trod, have trod, have trod;
And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil;
And wears man's smudge and shares man's smell: the soil
Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod.
And for all this, nature is never spent;
There lives the dearest freshness deep down things;
And though the last lights off the black West went
Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs —
Because the Holy Ghost over the bent
World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.
Lady Wisdom
We have loved having you here today.
You can download August's PDF for all main written content and lyrics, as well as audio files for the featured songs and poems by clicking the button below. (Available at 9pm PST, August 7th, 2021.)
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BONUS MATERIAL:
Not ready for your art experience to end just yet?
Some other extra content worth your time can be found below.
Choral "Agnus Dei"
A beautiful choral piece I grew up singing by Canadian composer Imant Raminsh, sung here by a wonderful choir.
"Life's Never Perfect, But It's Good"
My song about life set to videos of friendship with my dear friends and their little girls.
Special thanks to all who support great artists around the world, ensuring a legacy of humanity and beauty for future generations. "I Will Grow Old" and "Lady Wisdom" written and performed by Kay Clarity. Poem used from the Public Domain: "God's Grandeur" by Gerard Manley Hopkins. All photos featured by Kay Clarity. Candle featured in every episode is from House of Royals Co.
This Art Episode series has been copyrighted, inclusive of all individual elements within the episodes, as well as the concept. It can be shared personally and directly with anyone of interest, but can't be replicated without permission. For inquiries for broader use, please write me and my team at [email protected].
Copyright Kay Clarity/Snow Rose Productions/Calibre Records, 2021. All rights reserved.
