Forward Love

The  horizontal arrow on our e-mail  lets us forward so many messages these days. Why not forward a little love poem via e-mail?

I held a Jewel in my fingers –

I held a Jewel in my fingers –

And went to sleep –

Love Poems of Emily Dickinson

The day was warm, and winds were prosy –

I said "'Twill keep" –

I woke – and chid my honest fingers,

The Gem was gone –

And now, an Amethyst remembrance

Is all I own –

                                                                                                   ~Emily Dickinson   (1861)

Though considered by many the greatest American female poet of the nineteenth century, Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) saw only a few of her 1,700 poems published in her lifetime, and those were published anonymously and without her permission. Her style considered unconventional and complex, she used short phrases set off by dashes. Her themes focused on intense extremes of life and death, grief and ecstasy, love and loneliness, religious salvation and sensual romance. Though she lived a secluded life in her home at Amherst, Massachusetts, her powerful poetry has touched generations of readers.
The Emily Dickinson stamp was issued in 1971.

Emily Dickinson stamp

 This little poem packs a solid punch to the aimless lover. The jewel we most desire is not made of diamonds or amethysts, it is the knowledge that the lover lying by our side will be there through the nights and the windy days. Emily seems to say hold on to what you love, less it become nothing but a memory. Lying in bed, she wonders if that memory is even more precious than any jewel. in her eyes, he is still a gem.
    In Amherst, Massachusetts where Emily Dickinson lived, I wonder if she would have enjoyed this simple soup (recipe below) when she was chilled to the bone by poetry. I made mine with rice milk. I also added 1 tablespoon of chopped celery to the origninal recipe.

FLORENTINE TOMATO BISQUE

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped organic green onion
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves , crushed
1 cup packed shredded organic spinach leaves, stems removed
16 ounces of organic tomato sauce
12 ounces organic milk or substitute

Heat the oil in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and thyme and cook until the onion is tender.

Stir in the spinach and cook until it's wilted. Stir the tomato sauce and milk into the vegetables and heat through.

Enjoy!