John R Smith
03-12-2003, 04:17 AM
Well folks, for once the sun is out here in Cornwall and there is a hint of spring in the air. In fact we have loads of primroses in flower in the hedges, and the camellias are in bloom in the garden. So perhaps it is almost time to be thinking of getting down to the beach, removing the winter covers and fitting the old girl out yet again for the summer season.
Just to inspire us all a little, here is a nice quote from one of our most famous Cornish authors, who was also a very keen yachtsman –
“Best hour of all perhaps is that before bed-time, when the awning has been spread once more, and after long hours in the open our world narrows to the circle of the reading-lamp in the cockpit. Our cabin is prepared. Through the open door we see its red curtain warm in the light of the swinging lamp, the beds laid, the white sheets turned back. Still we grudge these moments to sleep. Outside we hear the tide streaming seawards, light airs play beneath the awning, above it rides the host of heaven. And here, gathered into a few square feet, we have home – larder, cellar, library, tables, and cupboards; life’s small appliances with the human comradeship they serve, chosen for their service after severely practical discussion, yet ultimately by the heart’s true nesting instinct. We are isolated, bound even to this strange river-bed by a few fathoms of chain only. Tomorrow we can lift anchor and spread wing; but we carry home with us.”
“From a Cornish Window”, 1906, Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch
Now that’s the sort of thing that keeps me varnishing through the winter ;)
John
Just to inspire us all a little, here is a nice quote from one of our most famous Cornish authors, who was also a very keen yachtsman –
“Best hour of all perhaps is that before bed-time, when the awning has been spread once more, and after long hours in the open our world narrows to the circle of the reading-lamp in the cockpit. Our cabin is prepared. Through the open door we see its red curtain warm in the light of the swinging lamp, the beds laid, the white sheets turned back. Still we grudge these moments to sleep. Outside we hear the tide streaming seawards, light airs play beneath the awning, above it rides the host of heaven. And here, gathered into a few square feet, we have home – larder, cellar, library, tables, and cupboards; life’s small appliances with the human comradeship they serve, chosen for their service after severely practical discussion, yet ultimately by the heart’s true nesting instinct. We are isolated, bound even to this strange river-bed by a few fathoms of chain only. Tomorrow we can lift anchor and spread wing; but we carry home with us.”
“From a Cornish Window”, 1906, Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch
Now that’s the sort of thing that keeps me varnishing through the winter ;)
John