Thursday 2 April 2009

Fragility: gossamer of the soul



A noiseless patient spider (1862-3)

A noiseless patient spider,
I mark'd where on a little promontory it stood isolated,
Mark'd how to explore the vacant vast surrounding,
It launch'd forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself,
Ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them.

And you O my soul where you stand,
Surrounded, detached, in measureless oceans of space,
Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them,
Till the bridge you will need be form'd, till the ductile anchor hold,
Till the gossamer thread you fling catch somewhere, O my soul.
... Walt Whitman ...

7 comments:

brattcat said...

A spider web that has caught the golden insect that is the sun. Amazing.

Lowell said...

Wonderful photo with great lighting! Like the poem, too.

bitingmidge said...

No one feels sorry for the deceased though!

Another top week of shots Julie!

Sunshine Coast Daily Photo - Australia

Ann said...

wonderful lighting.

Sally said...

Hi Julie, On the collage: I just used the free tool on Picasa, and chose the option that does this (Mosaic I think). You can shuffle them around automatically.

And the "giant clam" - it was a lamp in a shop window in Newtown.

Sally

Joan Elizabeth said...

Wow that is some web, I wouldn't want to stumble into that one. I'm fond of that poem.

raf said...

Love how perfectly you wed great verse to your lovely images, Julie.