Tuesday, December 29, 2009

the woods are lovely, dark and deep

Okay, back up to last Tuesday, the 22nd. Remember that load of snow that landed on the east coast? Well, one of my little ships was stranded in an airport, with no flights out until Christmas Eve. So, the resourceful little ship boarded a train and headed west. We, in turn, hopped in our trusty dark green Land Rover and headed east. It was a beautiful wintry road trip.

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village, though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.


My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.


He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there's some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.


The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

Robert Frost


72 comments:

  1. Lovely. Robert Frost is one of my favourite poets and I adore this poem.

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  2. willow this is such a wickedgood pairing of your photographs with frost's words. these are the days to be deep in the woods . . . it's almost entirely silent. i stopped for a moment on my walk through some nearby woods yesterday and watched a mouse hopping over and under the little snow drifts. it either didn't know i was there, or it sensed that i would never hurt it. have a lovely evening at the manor. steven

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  3. Such a lovely poem and the pictures match beautifully.

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  4. Stunning! Loveeeeeeeely!
    Did you all reunite at a reasonable interval?

    Frost's words make a nice narrative for your pictures.

    You even have a sign pointing to your hill!

    Enjoy winter, warmth, and good shoes!

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  5. Wonderful combining of photos and poem...you were in your glory traveling on a snowy day!
    Love the new hat...do be careful to hide your garters and keep your stocking seams straight!

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  6. Beautiful suite of words and pictures! So glad your little ship came in.

    The chapeau is magnifique!

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  7. Lovely! We'd bring our little ships home for Christmas no matter what it took, wouldn't we!? :)

    Love the new hat!

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  8. Beautiful! Your neck of the woods looks lovely in winter glory. The poem goes so well with the photos too.

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  9. That looks far too cold for me.

    Love the new hat!

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  10. Great match-up of words & pix--sounds like a nice trip--esp. the train part!

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  11. A very neat post for today. You did a super job with the pictures and your comments.

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  12. love how frost seems to narrate your passing as well as your pics...i do hope you met up at a reasonable hour and were able to have the holidays together.

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  13. Again, you have expanded my world just a little bit. Lovely.

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  14. Happy New Year Willow
    SOME HAT LOVE IT.
    very nice writing
    pretty photo's..
    yvonne

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  15. How blessed that your little ship can be secure in the knowledge that he has a small fleet to rescue him when need be.

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  16. Health to you and to all his family.
    I hope you had a Merry Christmas and the New Year will be very successful.
    Thank you for your kind words.
    Images are Fantata, high quality and very inspiring.
    Congratulations.
    A Good Year with health, peace, joy, love and lots of painting.
    Cheers.

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  17. That must have been a joyous meeting with one of your little ships. Navigating through that snow must have been quite an adventure.

    And, OH I LOVE the hat!!!

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  18. Love the new hat. I got one last year. The poem and pictures are just perfect together. Thank goodness the little ship was safe. Happy New Year dear gal.
    QMM

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  19. I love the Willow Hill highway sign. The trip through Ohio was fun.

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  20. Lady Willow in the elegant chapeau,

    I loved reading Robert Frost's poem again - it had been a long time - made even more special by your beautiful snowy photography! I am glad you made it safe and sound through the drifts.

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  21. Last time I read this Frost poem I was explaining it to students. Your pictures give it much more meaning.

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  22. A lovely post, a lovely poem, a lovely winter's drive!

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  23. Whenever I hear this iconic poem, I say a silent prayer of thanks to my HS English teacher for introducing me to Frost. This is my very favorite. Your pics are spot on fabulous! Hugs, Terri

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  24. One of my all-time favorite poems! Love it, the pics, and the new hat!

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  25. Beautiful post Willow.
    You look lovely in your new hat.

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  26. I just love Robert Frost,and your photos. What a pair you make.

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  27. Robert Frost is my favorite. My Father used to recite this poem. Thanks for posting it. So appropriate for your situation and for this time of year. Hope your Christmas was merry and your New Year is wonderful.

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  28. "miles to go before I sleep." Those are favorite words. Such a metaphor for life.
    I keep a children's book version of this on the coffee table this time of year, which is filled with beautiful drawings.
    Great hat Willow - Great Gatsby-ish.

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  29. That's a very resourceful ship you have there. You've taught them well to go with the flow.
    And your hat is gorgeous...great picture of you! Did you go shopping with Dudley again? : )

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  30. Thanks, Cat. Yes, Dudley is SO much fun to shop with! :^)

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  31. Wonderful poem. Wonderful photos. I'm glad your ship came in--smart way to handle the situation, too.

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  32. One of my favorite poems, so beautifully juxtaposed with your own homeward journey.
    Merry Christmas Willow

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  33. :) I don't know snow. I live in a savannah.

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  34. Beautiful, just beautiful . . .

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  35. Willow,
    Loverly!!!
    He is my favoritist and this one one the bestes.
    rel

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  36. That's so funny: Yesterday, I used the same poem as an inspiration. ;-)

    One of our four little ships safely made it out of California, through Dallas (just before snow hit) and all the way here the day before Christmas Eve, with only little bit than an hour's delay. It was a little Christmas miracle.

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  37. Snow what you mean! Great pics and lovely words.

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  38. First of all allow me to compliment you on that lovely photo with your spiffing new hat (see how English I got then?)

    Shame your little ship had problems getting home but at least we got some cracking photos out of the dilemma.

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  39. Robert Frost also wrote
    "home is the place where if you have to go there, they have to let you in"
    summed it quite well, i think

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  40. First off; I remember digging out from that storm, all too well!

    Second; love the new header and glad you ahd a safe journey...

    Lastly; fantastic poem to go along with the snaps :)

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  41. One of the highlights of my tour in May 2009 was visiting the grave of Robert Frost in Old Bennington - I love his poetry and this one in particular. As soon as I read the first line I knew it was one of his. Happy New Year to you all.

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  42. Oh so lovely post, Willow......and, my dear, that is some cloche you're sporting on your sidebar! LOVE it! Frames your lovely face, perfectly:) What a timeless classic..I also got a new cloche for Christmas..two hats actually, but one is a floppy wide brimmed number:)...

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  43. Rebecca, the Christmas cloche is a gift from my daughter. I adore it! The pic is a little too perfect, heh-heh, I need to mess my hair up or something. ;^)

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  44. PS, I actually thought of you, Rebecca, when I opened it Christmas morning!

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  45. My favorite line is: "The only other sound's the sweep
    Of easy wind and downy flake." Just lovely. Also incredible photos Willow; did you take yourself?

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  46. Hey Willow,

    Always nice to hear Frost! Really like the picture taken in the tunnel.

    Best,

    David
    http://www.globalaroundtown.blogspot.com

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  47. PERFECT!
    And, I am glad your ship came in safely!

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  48. Gosh-that was beautiful! Love the personal tie in to this powerful poem! Have a happy and successful 2010, Ms Willow!

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  49. Gaston Studio, yup, my little Canon PowerShot is my friend.

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  50. Winter journeys!
    Magical with a little hint of the scary about them.
    This is one of my favorite poems to enjoy for me and to teach.
    Happy new year Willow
    and you WILL come to New york this year
    I feel it in my old bones!

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  51. This is a personal favorite of mine. I love the childlike enchanment with the snowy woods and great wisdom in "miles to go"...great snow scenes!
    Willow, I sent you an electronic Christmas card, not my usual choice, but this one is a great design. Enjoy!

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  52. Dear Willow,

    I have missed stopping by the Manor! It looks lovely! I do hope your Christmas was merry and blessed. Your new hat is fabulous! I love it.

    Have a wonderful week and a very happy New Year!

    Happy Tuesday,
    Jen

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  53. Ah, Willow...that is so sweet!...Your daughter has excellent taste, but of course she would, being that she's your daughter..:D

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  54. Great pictures. Amazing Blog. Inspired friends. Love the slide show at the bottom. True Renaissance Woman, you.

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  55. LOVE your new hat. And the pics are beautiful. Don't know why but as I gazed at the images and read the poetry, Johnny Cash songs went through my head.

    ?? Weird.

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  56. Hey, Reya, I think Johnny Cash would be perfect paired with my road pics!

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  57. The poem and your images are just lovely. I have always loved that particular Frost poem for so many reasons. None that have to do with Winter.

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  58. I am not a fan of poetry, but the Frost poem speaks to me in a way that few others do. I remember reading once that at a lecture, he was asked by a college student (probably hoping to impress his mates) what the author meant when he repeated the line "And miles to go before I sleep."

    Frost contemplated the question, tugged at an earlobe and said: "...I meant And miles to go before I sleep."

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  59. The love of a mother so deep. Glad you were able to reunite for the eve. Loved how you presented Frost's poem. It was my daughter's favorite as a child. She had to memorize it for a school recital. Thanks for sharing your love story!
    xoxo

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  60. Hey Willow - have you ever seen the movie "Othello", starring Laurence Fishburne and Kenneth Branagh?

    There is a scene in it where beautiful Desdemona sings a song called "Willow".

    I think of that song every time I visit your blog.

    If you haven't seen that movie, do! It's one of the best ever made.

    - M

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  61. Came here because of the post title, although I'd come here regardless. Excellent use of Frost's poem here. I used it recently too. It's one of my favorites.

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  62. Marcheline, Oh,YES! I love that movie, in fact, one of my very first blog posts was on that Willow song that Irene Jacob sings!

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  63. Oh how I adore hats! I wish I lived back when they were so popular that every woman wore them.
    Robert Frost is simply stunning!

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  64. Your phots nd Frost's words--perfect together. Loved it.

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  65. i would have loved that trip as long as i wasn't driving. this is my fave frost poem -- hands down. i hope we get more snow soon so i an feed my hungry creative soul with photos.

    take care, dear friend!

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  66. The poem is lovely and really fits in with the pictures.
    Hope you were not delayed too much.

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Inject a few raisins of conversation into the tasteless dough of existence.
― O. Henry (and me)