Building a Rainbow to Caliban, in Seven Steps

1. Red-eyed, not weary, we feed
on the rarefied
aerial leavings of gruntled clouds.

2. An Orange gap carves out when
the gobbling is done,
and strings are strung tight across that lap.

3. These six wires grate full Yellow
hymns into fine crumbs,
sifting down through curious weather.

4. The suppler notes land to Green
and moisten stretched tongues
on mannered ferns eager to praise sing:

5. Of powder Blue complexions,
jays abandoning
spent wings to totter off at twilight,

6. In search of Indigo fins
and shallow pools where
they might paddle up enough courage,

7. To ask the Violet sky
to stay its blushing
hues, so he'll never be wak'd again.

— Francis Scudellari

A heartfelt quote ...

I was just tagged today by Hanna with the From The Heart meme (grazie tante a te Hanna come sempre). I like this meme because it's as simple as they get ... having only one rule:

Post a quote that speaks from and to your heart and dedicate it to at least three other bloggers.

So, here's the quote that I've always felt touched by:

"...and then in dreaming
The clouds methought would open and show riches
Ready to drop upon me, that when I wak'd
I cried to dream again."
William Shakespeare's The Tempest: Act III, Scene ii, 137-140

The words are spoken by Caliban, one of the more interesting characters from one of Shakespeare's more problematic plays (and one that formed the heart of my Master's thesis). The drama isn't a tragedy, but it has darker themes not befitting a comedy. Although Caliban is portrayed most often as brutish and bitter — misshapen in physical form and spirit — these lines betray a surprisingly poetic soul and an aching desire for a better life.

Now here are the three bloggers I'm dedicating this exercise to:

• JD at The Uneasy Supplicant
• Lisa at LifePrints
• Dave at Wandering the Ether
  

I've got another meme that I'll be passing on in the next few days (I haven't forgotten it Nina!) ... so prepare yourselves.