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| Lake Louise. |
It's back! I'm happy to be participating in the WEP Challenge once again. Thank you to Denise Covey & Yolanda Renee for starting this baby up again!
Today's theme is Spectacular Settings, and while I could have drawn inspiration from where I live, by spectacular oceans and a mighty river, I tend to be more inspired by what I can never have. Sniffle. That's why I'm going to talk a bit about snow. ;)
The photo above was taken at Lake Louise, Canada, in 2009. Lake Louise was the coldest place I've ever been to, so cold it hurt to breathe. But I love snow, and cold weather. Easy for me to say since I never have to deal with any actual snow in my daily life. But it's still true - I love snow. One might say I'm a little obsessed.
Maybe that's why the song "Falling Snow" by Agalloch first caught my attention! It's one of the most mesmerising songs I've ever heard. The lyrics are beautiful to me, though to others they may seem rather bleak and dark. I don't know what it is about metal, but to me, it's often romantic. This song is no exception. And so I thought I'd share the lyrics, though I don't expect everyone to "get" my obsession with it / them. But here they are anyway:
The water pours its embracing arms 'round the stone.
Decay drips from the unquiet void.
Where the ice forms. Where life ends.
The stone is by the crimson blood, swallowed.
The red tide beyond the ebon wound, contorted.
My sacrifice bids farewell in this river of memory:
A wave to end all time.
Red birds escape from my wounds,
And return as falling snow,
To sweep the landscape a wind haunted
Wings without bodies.
The snow, the bitter snowfall.
You long to die in her pale arms, crystalline
To become an ode to silence
In the soul of a mountain of birds, fallen.
The cascading pallor
Of ghostless feather.
The snow has fallen
And raised this white mountain
On which you will die
And fade away in silence.
Those last four lines are the ones that get me every time!
Thanks for visiting. :)
On the other side of Oz, I see a little snow. But not enough, never enough.
ReplyDeleteRed birds escape from my wounds is incredibly evocative...
Thank you so much for these lyrics. I will have to explore further.
Ha Ha Trish. I totally get you. When I travel, I usually head off over Christmas when it's heatwave conditions Down Under. I forego heat, humidity and er, swimming, to embrace overcoats, scarves and beanies as I wade through the snowy streets of Amsterdam or Paris. So lovely! I thought I'd lose my nose in Venice in November, but I managed to survive intact!
ReplyDeleteI haven't been to Lake Louise but it's on my bucket list when I 'do' Alaska and the Rockies. Hmm. So many place, so little time. I know you feel exactly the same.
And those song lyrics. I read them, but I must listen too. They are haunting and for snow lovers, thrilling. I can see why you love the song so.
Thanks Trish for sharing with us. Lovely to see a bit of snow. Even though it's our winter, up in Queensland it's just like you in Western Australia--not much cold to speak of.
Denise :-)
Lyrical poetry has an advantage over prose in that it distills and concentrates the use of imagery to its most fundamental elements. An excellent choice that really highlights the theme of setting.
ReplyDeleteTrisha:
ReplyDeleteI love snow. It's always been an inspiration for me and I've stood in my nice warm living room watching it fall for hours on end. I've even put my desk in front of the window to observe, dream, and compose as it fell. It must be why I set my stories in Alaska. There is nothing more magical, at least not to me, and I see you agree?!
The photograph of Lake Louise is breathtaking and I can feel the icy wind, the crisp air, and the warmth of the winter coat that protects the wearer and allows the magic to happen safely. Mesmerizing, inspirational, and already I'm formulating a story.
Thanks for providing the words to Falling Snow by Agalloch. I did bring it up to listen to, but alas Metal is not my cup of tea. But it doesn't matter the words of the poem are what inspires. I read somewhere today that folks often say they don't like poetry, or don't understand it, yet the words set to music is poetry, ballads are one of my favorite. The folks who make the statement are usually lovers of music too. Interesting isn't it.
Some of my favorite lines in this poem the first sentence if course, and the:
The cascading pallor
Of ghostless feather.
I applaud your choice of Lake Louise and Falling Snow; they're a great addition to the WEP Spectacular Settings Challenge. Thank you, Trisha, please join us again in October for the Halloween challenge, Childhood Frights vs. Adult Fears – bring on the spooky music!
I definitely don't think metal is most people's cup of tea that will be visiting my blog :) That's ok ,we are all different! I still think that some metal lyrics can really inspire even non-metal fans, as it seems it did with you. :)
DeleteIt may not be my selection for music, but the poetry, the inspiration is still the same! I do know one other metal fan. Alex Cavanaugh! He'll love this! And as you do the A to Z, I'm sure he'll be around to comment!
DeletePowerful. Some haunting lines. I particularly like 'To become an ode to silence'. That's the thing I love best about snow, that silence that settles on the landscape like a shroud. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteWow, what a landscape of snow. Very powerful especially when you say it was so cold it hurt to breathe. Snow has that quality that changes everything around it, noise levels change, the feel underneath your feet is different, sometimes it is quite a romantic idea. The song lyrics grasp and pull at you in many different ways, almost fantasy or perhaps paranormal or even of an old civilisation, Very interesting post.
ReplyDeleteHi Trisha - having been to Lake Louise too .. but in summer (well it was snowing - July 4th) ... and I was cold! which I don't like .. but thinking about the lyrics and the drip of life ending and decay beginning ... so true in many areas of our life, yet so often the beginning too of life again and which teach us so much through the drips left ...
ReplyDeleteI'm not so sure about the metal and Lake Louise .. but I'd go along with your ideas at times ...
Take care and enjoy that heat .. cheers Hilary
The Canadian Rockies... I have never been. So beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI'm well acquainted with cold and snow, though. We get plenty of that in northern New England.
Like you, I never have to deal with any actual snow in my daily life. Ours is a subtropical climate with lots of humidity. I don't think I'd survive in bitterly cold conditions.
ReplyDeleteThat's a beautiful picture Trisha.
I live in Canada. As a result I have a love / hate relationship with Winter. It's beautiful, mesmerizing, hypnotic, other worldly; and deadly. Thank you for the lyrics. Very deep, like the snow I have to shovel off my sidewalks. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteOh, this was just awesome. Love the poetry and made me think of one romantic song with the words - when the snow is on the roses...
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteI have to confessed that I am not a snow fan. In fact, I hate the stuff. I always say, I'd rather sweat than freeze.
Your submission is lovely, but I am not going to even try to experience it in real life.
Shalom,
Patricia
I'm totally the opposite of you - I'd always rather freeze than sweat. Though that's not quite true - I'd rather pack on the layers until I'm nice and snug, than not be able to escape the revolting heat in any way!! :)
DeleteI can understand those who live with snow every year and have to dig themselves out of it not being huge fans of it, though. ha.
This was breathtaking! The image and the description. Had to read it two times to savor it.
ReplyDeleteI can't tell you how pleased I am that your entry comes from a song. I'm all the time trying to convince people that music and writing go together. As for metal, I like it. There aren't many musical genres I don't like. The music was great, but the vocals were hard to hear. In any case, the lyrics you provided stood out.
ReplyDeletePoetry in the form of song always impresses me. Thanks for sharing this "unsettling" cold.
Good choice. You might look into "The Tempest" by Nightwish.
ReplyDeleteI also love snow and cold weather.
You should definitely move to Colorado Trish. There's just enough snow that you wouldn't be like OMG what was I thinking!!! and it's warm in the summer. Although global warming has warmed up Canada too- but it's dark there very early in the winter. Very early! We should really do one of those trading things like in the Maeve Bincy book. I'll work in your library and you can work in mine! How about it?
ReplyDeleteThose last four lines do linger in one's mind. I've been to Lake Louise, but it was in the summer, not the winter. I'm not a lover of snow. I was fascinated by it initially since I'm originally from the southern US, but that wore off when I had to drive in it. . .here on the west coast, it can be treacherous. Enjoyed your entry, and glad to see you participating again.
ReplyDeletePowerful lines! I love the picture, and since I'm not a winter person, that says a lot. ;)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! Both the picture and the poem.
ReplyDeleteHi, Trisha...
ReplyDeleteACK..... Spend a few winters in Chicago, and then let's talk. LOL. All kidding aside, I do love snow, too. But, I had the frigid wind that rips through your skin. Give me a few months of winter a year and I would truly enjoy it, but here... we get almost eight months. We are already cooling down and we have just warmed up. Only six weeks of summer and fall is here already. Not fun...
If you LOVE snow, do drop by my blog... I think you'll enjoy my entry.
The pic of Lake Louise is astonishingly beautiful and I "DO" get the lyrics...