Well the Pope is chosen Leo X1V. A youngish pope this time and from America. He is to follow in the footsteps of the last pope, so liberal and green I believe. His name made me think of Matilda's boyfriend's name which I can never remember but I have to think of the devil, then go to Lucifer and then Lucien which is his name. Surprisingly he is not happy with my thinking.
VE Day passed yesterday, I have seen the pictures on the blogs but did not see the ceremony itself. Commemorating war is a difficult one for me, especially as war is still with us today, there never seems an end to it. For me Paul Nash's painting of a stricken landscape paints it vividly enough and yet we are seeing the same horrors as yesterday's wars created.
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| Paul Nash - War |
Death and desolate landscapes, mud and bravery are the reminder, not Vera Lynn singing 'We'll Meet Again'. We pay homage to the brave young who lay down their lives for us but we still allow war on our planet and let new mothers break their hearts.
As the end of the war came to halt I was born, so really did not experience it. Though I remember a sheaf of war drawings we had so I must have been aware of it. Even today crystal clear comes the memory when I was about 7 years old of a drawing I made of refugees on a cart with all their belongings piled high. The teacher asked how did I know about such things, perhaps it was one of those drawings that sparked my drawing but now refugees flood the world because of war and cruelty - nothing has changed, it is profitable to make guns!
Edit: Views on the Pope and people I listen to:
Alistair Campbell and Rory Stewart
And Anthony Scaramucci and Katy Kay
‘Protest shapes the world’: Rebecca Solnit on the fight back against Trump | Activism | The Guardian
As you know, I have joined protests against Trump. We have a big one coming up on June 14th that I plan on doing.
ReplyDeleteGood on you Ellen, the only way to get rid of the man is to protest and bring court cases against him.
DeleteYou know you are getting old when you are older than the Pope.
ReplyDeleteHe is 69 years old Tasker, very much younger than many popes so we shall have him for a long time.
DeleteI went into "The Dark Horse" pub last night and said to the barmaid, "Is there an extension tonight?"
ReplyDelete"Why? What for?"
"Because it's the 80th anniversary of V.E. Day."
"V.E. Day. What's that?"
"Victory in Europe. You know. The end of World War II."
"Oh, I know what you mean now. No there's no extension. We don't have a licence for things like that."
I sat in the window and supped two pints of ale, recalling that the government had pronounced that all pubs would be allowed to stay open until the early hours of the morning to mark V.E.Day.
I thought you were going to tell me a joke Neil but the landlord obviously had not been listening to the news. Anyway it does you no good to keep drinking;)
ReplyDeleteI am just old enough to remember a Nissan hut Polish refugee camp near where I lived as a youngster. I have some memories of my mother and other women visiting with clothing for them, so they must have still been there into the 1950s.
ReplyDeleteFunnily enough as children my brother and I were looked after by a housekeeper. Louisa was Italian and mothered us for a time but then went off to marry a Polish man. I was a bridesmaid at her wedding, and I remember Cossack dancing and those funny hard sweets with nuts inside.
Deleteas an atheist i don't understand the whole "pope" thing...... not that i can really afford to think about it too hard...
ReplyDeleteas for VE day..... we have to remember it was only the start of the end of the war and the whole thing was still going on elsewhere..... and of course, as you've said..... there's never been much absence of war.... just different wars :/
As the news this morning pointed out between Pakistan and India A/F it is war. Catholicism was beaten back in this country on the grounds of idolatry and wanting political power over other countries. The Roundheads were very anti, stabling their horses in church and destroying the statues in church.
DeleteYes an American pope was quite a surprise, while not of that faith I felt quite happy about the choice. Perhaps Trump might take notice of his views?
ReplyDeleteHe is a good choice, maybe a political choice to stand up to Trump I think. Two billion Catholics in the world, Pope Leo has a bigger audience than Trump.
ReplyDelete"Our Lucien" was a character in The Liver Birds (essential watching when I was young). He kept rabbits.
ReplyDeleteCan't remember him though I watched the Liver Birds. Our Lucien is a drummer in a band but is a math's tutor as well. I kept rabbits as well at one stage;)
ReplyDelete