Shuttered Windows

There is something about shuttered windows … something secretive … something mysterious.

There’s a hint of romance …

 

… and more than a little whimsy.

But  best of all, shuttered windows take me back to my childhood days. I remember standing behind the shutters of my  great-grandmother’s house, on hot summer days, and looking down on the street below. My great-aunt used to tell me that it wasn’t good manners to hide behind the shutters and eavesdrop. But I was four years old and did not pay too much attention to etiquette.

For me it was just a game. Hiding in the shadows and watching … listening. Did I learn any secrets? Perhaps. Will I share them with you? No …  that would be telling. Go listen at the windows … shhh … perhaps you’ll learn some secrets too.

/

The Secrets of the Shell

Have you ever held a shell to you ear?

And listened to its secrets?

Have you ever heard the tale it has to tell?

Of deep blue seas and crashing waves?

Treasure chests and mermaids?

Have you ever been enthralled

By the mystery of its song?

By the whispers of its soul?

By the silence of its voice?

    

Reminiscing

A few thoughts provoked by some photos taken on vacation in charming Burano (June 2007).

I wandered slowly past colourful houses,

the sun’s intense heat reflecting off the buildings and cobbled streets.

I crossed a bridge

and then another,

sluggish canal water reflected the myriad colours.

Each nook was a source of new wonder, a marriage of hues

or a clash of colours,

some vibrant, some muted.

A house crowned with flowers.

A street market.

A church with a leaning tower.

A breezy square.

Reds and yellows.

Browns and greens …

A rainbow of colours providing cheer on all but the greyest of days.

(All photos marked D. Dykstra were taken by my husband. I had not yet converted to digital photography and all my photos were taken with a trusty Pentax using film.)

No Comments ???

It seems that a serious mishap has occurred on my blog. It appears that I have lost my comments on a number of my older posts. This makes me sad. Has anybody else noticed this or is it just me? Does anybody know if there is a way I can fix this? I so appreciate the time my friends take to stop by and comment on my posts. Losing these little messages is very upsetting. Please let me know if you have had the same problem. Thanks. I hope to have a post ready later on today. In the meantime, I will continue to hope that my comments will come back from the mysterious beyond that seems to have engulfed them :(