Today's Flowers; Autumn's delights;

Autumn is the time of life for Aloes;

Roses have their comeback in autumn; this one is Apricot Nectar;

Hibiscus are still going...

Some hang on just a little to long!

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Thank you to the Flower-Team;

Witches Chant; by William Shakespeare

Witches Chant; From the Tragedy of Macbeth.

Round about the cauldron go:

In the poisones entrails throw.

Toad,that under cold stone

Days and nights has thirty-one

Sweated venom sleeping got,

Boil thou first in the charmed pot.

Double,double toil and trouble;

Fire burn and cauldron bubble

Fillet of a fenny snake,

In the cauldron boil and bake;

Eye of newt and toe of frog,

Wool of bat and tongue of dog,

Adder's fork and blindworm's sting,

Lizard's leg and howlet's wing.

For charm of powerful trouble,

Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.

Double,double toil and trouble;

Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

Scale of dragon,tooth of wolf,

Witch's mummy, maw and gulf

Of the ravin'd salt-sea shark,

Root of hemlock digg'd in the dark,

Liver of blaspheming Jew;

Gall of goat; andslips of yew

silver'd in the moon's eclipse;

Nose of Turk, and Tartar's lips;

Finger of birth-strangled babe

Ditch-deliver'd by the drab,-

Make the gruel thick and slab:

Add thereto a tiger's chaudron,

For ingredients of our cauldron.

Double,double toil and trouble,

Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

This was "the stuff" that would give me goosebumps! Can it get worse than this?

The Tragedy of Macbeth (commonly called Macbeth) is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath.

It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607. The earliest account of a performance of what was likely Shakespeare's play is April 1611, when Simon Forman recorded seeing such a play at the Globe Theatre. It was first published in the Folio of 1623, possibly from a prompt book for a specific performance.

Shakespeare's sources for the tragedy are the accounts of King Macbeth of Scotland. However, the story of Macbeth as told by Shakespeare bears no relation to real events in Scottish history as Macbeth was an admired and able monarch.

In the back-stage world of theatre, some believe that the play is cursed, and will not mention its name aloud, referring to it instead as "The Scottish Play". Over the centuries, the play has attracted some of the greatest actors in the roles of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. The play has been adapted to film, television, opera, novels, and other media.

Song of Innocence; A free spirit;

A free spirit;

I had my first encounter with religion when I was eight years old.

My parents did not like organized religion. My father was an atheist. I am not sure about my mother but I think she was not a believer. I never saw her at church, only once when I had my first communion and usually at Christmas, because I went there with my class to sing Christmas carols.

It was actually a protestant church as I went to a protestant school in a protestant village . It was all very confusing. Anyway I was baptized In the catholic faith, as both my parents were at a certain time, when they did not have a say in this matter.

As I was to receive my first communion I had to be instructed about it. For the religious instructions I had to travel by train to the next village. It was a prosperous, catholic village with two beautiful big Churches.

The instructions were held in a schoolroom of a newly build school. It was terribly boring, I did not understand what the priest was talking about and I never learned my lines from the catechism. I was more interested in the other children and my surroundings. I felt very grown up as I traveled alone to this village and had to find my way to the school.

I soon made friends with another girl who was beautifully dressed.

She was black haired with freckles, her name was Genevieve. When I first met her she wore a lime green coat beautifully tailored, she said her Mother was a dressmaker and made all her garments. I was only eight but I had this feeling for beautiful things, it did not matter what it was.

At the church, all the instructions about the big day and what we had to do went over my head as I was entranced and overwhelmed with the paintings and overall sanctity of the church. The singing, the smell of incense the ancient Greek words, the Kyrie Eleison, falling like pearls from my lips. I was now really looking forward to my spirituel entrance into this community.

My mother had bought white fabric to make my first communion frock, I think she was as excited about the project as I was. When I asked her if she liked to make this beautiful garment she said don’t be “meschugge”. She never said mad or silly always meschugge. I liked that word it was different, the other children didn’t know the word meschugge. I did not know where it came from and why she used it.

She said:” you can help making the frock but be careful this is silk.” I knew silk was made by grubs and in my imagination I saw all this tiny grubs patiently making the thread for this rippling, white fabric.

My mother cut out the pattern. The dress would be long, reaching down to my shoes.

The front on top would be embroidered with smocking stitches. It was very elaborate work and my fingers and hands got sticky and I soiled the material. My mother dismissed me quickly from helping.

Finally the first communion frock was finished and I slipped into it, whirled and danced around in the living room, like it was made for this frivolous purpose. I could barley wait until white Sunday arrived. I received new white sandals, first my mother wanted to colour my brown shoes white. I said I am not wearing them they are ugly. She said that I could be right and bought new, white sandals. I had to carry a tall candle embossed in gold with the sign of the holy spirit. The base of the candle was wrapped in one of my mothers lacy handkerchiefs. My short plaits were tied with white ribbons. I wanted to leave my hair falling in waves over my shoulders like Maria, the mother of god. My mother did not allow it.

My mother did not have a veil for me but she said that the nun who looked after us had one for me.

When I arrived at the schoolhouse where the children were assembled to go in a procession to the church, all I saw was a sea of veils popping up and down.

The girls all in white and the boys in blue suits. A nun took me aside and pushed a veil on my hair which she secured with a small, green wreath and a lot of bobby pins which made my scalp itch. I put my hand up and tried to loosen it, she slapped my hand and said:" leave it alone, now you made it all askew with your scratching.” I forgot about it when a friend of my mother was looking for me and gave me a pretty silver chain with a silver cross which she fastened around my neck. I thought this was so special because I was not expecting such a nice present. It was my first jewellery I received. I endured the long, alien ceremony and was glad when it was finished. After white Sunday I have never worn my white frock anymore. My mother gave it to another first communion girl to wear. However I wore my silver necklace for many years and I always thought with fondness of the lady who gave it to me.

Today's Flowers; Jazzy blues;

Dichorisandra thyrsiflora also commonly known as blue ginger.

Thunbergia ( I am not sure which one)

Peruvian Morning glory;

Pictures are from my archive, but these are now flowering in my garden.

Please click here for Today's Flowers

My Library; The Island; Spinalonga was a former leper colony;

The Island by Victoria Hislop.

Plaka 1953, a cold wind whipped through the narrow streets of Plaka and the chill of autumnal air encircled the woman, paralysing her body and mind with a numbness that almost blocked her senses but could do nothing to alleviate her grief. As she stumbled....

A powerful story about the fate of people who were unlucky enough to be infected by Lepra, had to leave their families and friends and were banned to the Island of Spinalonga.

The Island of Spinalonga, off the north coast of Crete, was Greece's main leper colony from 1903 until 1957.

It is notable for being one of the last active leper colonies in Europe. The last inhabitant, a priest, left the island in 1962. This was to maintain the religious tradition of the Greek Orthodox church, in which a buried person has to be commemorated 40 days, 6 months, 1, 3 and 5 years after their death. Other leper colonies that have survived Spinalonga include Tichilesti in Eastern Romania, Fontilles in Spain and Talsi in Latvia. As of 2002, few lazarettos remain in Europe.[1]

There were two entrances to Spinalonga, one being the lepers' entrance, a tunnel known as Dante's Gate. This was so named because the patients did not know what was going to happen to them once they arrived. However, once on the island they received food, water, medical attention and social security payments. Previously, such amenities had been unavailable to Crete's leprosy patients, as they mostly lived in the area's caves, away from civilization.

Pictures and Paintings; a potpourri of memories;

Summer; ripe wheat, a view from a window; in the distance the village of Sommeri. Nomen est omen!

Hudelmoos; a preserved wetland area where we used to go for walks with the children.

The bee house in the garden; The poeta was a hobby bee keeper.

Our home; was; has been; happy days;

The pond where we went skating with the children.

Bought this on a trip to Appenzell; Naive painting on wood by Willi Keller.

I embroidered the Butterflies 1988.

Have we met? I received this water colour painting from my dear friend Jan.

Kilchberg ZH, drawing by Erika Streit, We got married here 1960. Our first home was Toediweg 2. The poeta had a business here. I was treasurer of the Skiclub Kilchberg. Now just memories.

The poeta and I have cherished this drawing; It has suffered with age spots like us!

The piano player is still playing his haunting tunes.

Today's Flowers; Salvia "Black Knight";

SALVIA BLACK KNIGHT

2.0 x 1.50m. Dark purple tubular flowers in black calyces are produced in abundance during the summer months. Great for the back of the border and very easy.

Salvias are some of my favourite plants in the summer garden. The tropical ones grow easily from 1 - 1.5 m in height. There are many colours to choose from, purple, yellow, hot pink, soft pink and mauve and blue and more.

In my garden they grow and bloom from spring into winter, when I cut them back. They also grow from cuttings taken in summer.

Today's Flowers click here please;