Poetry

In 1797, Samuel Taylor Coleridge had a vivid dream after having indulged in opium the night before. According to the history books, "Upon waking, he set about writing lines of poetry that came to him from the dream until he was interrupted by a person from Porlock. The poem could not be completed according to its original 200-300 line plan as the interruption caused him to forget the lines."

This famous poem is Kubla Khan. Here's the first verse:

In Xanadu did Kublai Khan
A stately Pleasure-Dome decree,
Where Alph, the sacred river ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Down to a sunless sea.

This is one of the most famous poems in the English language.

This intro to my blog is by way of telling you all that Don and I drove to Porlock to see the town where Coleridge's interrupter came from!

It was a very small, quaint, and pleasant village. We attended an antiques fair in the village hall followed by a coffee and a piece of Victorian sponge cake offered by the ladies of the town.

The scenery on our drive back to Bideford was incredible. We followed the North Devon coastline and the Bristol Channel. We could see Wales on the other side.

Here is the quotation for the day (from my Royal Birthday Book):

There are a thousand things in life
Which pass unheeded in a life of joy
As thine hath been: till breezy sorrow comes
To ruffle it: and daily duties paid
Hardly at first, at length will bring repose
To the sad mind that studies to perform them.
-Talfourd