Did I Tell You?
Did I tell you that I wore a large white hat for tea? With veiling and white roses? Did I say that my Zelda Fitzgerald dress was white also, against the black of our chairs and that the Chancellor was dressed in white from hat to shoes? Did I remember to tell you that the cakes were airy and the biscuits light – that the tea was fragrant, the conversation a delight?
And did I mention that the flowers he brought crowned the tea table with their delicate scented blooms? Or that the lemon and cucumber were sliced exquisitely thin? And did I tell you, or did I forget, that I thought of you, beneath the small sounds of teacups and table talk, heartbeat slightly elevated, ticking away the minutes, one by one, until five?
Keywords:
"dazzling ... fills me with the most exquisite professional envy!"
”
—Thomas Vinciguerra, New York Times contributor & consultant, and editor, writer, critic for New Yorker, People, New York, The New York Observer, Newsday, Lingua Franca, GQ, etc.
About Harrison
Dr. Harrison Solow’s writing awards include the Pushcart Prize for Literature (2008). She is published by Simon & Schuster, The University of California Press, Harper Collins, Carpe Articulum, AOL, Cinnamon Press, AGNI, The Pushcart Press and several...
Causes Harrison Solow Supports
Lupus Foundation of America
Museum of Tolerance
Humane Society
Harrison’s Favorite Books
Our library consists of several thousand books. Favourite books span a wide range of genres, categories and eras. Among these are books of/on theology, art,...
You didn't, but I, who it
You didn't, but I, who it was not meant for, knew. Or know, for the words airy and light leave an aftertaste of moments passed.
Harrison, this was lovely in its quietly palpable way. And, belated but always intended, congratulations on your dissertation and the afterglow of realising a dream.
~F
No, you didn't until now.
What a delicious image you've created in my mind leading me to thoughts of paintings and jewelry!
You never cease to amaze me Harrison.
Thank you.
But it could have been. And
But it could have been. And thank you for not putting it in that narrow box that contains only sweethearts and leaves out the rest of the glorious world. This was a fragment to a clergyman - an old, dear friend. So often one thinks in terms of lovers and romance. But there is Romance in a teacup - and in anticipating the five o'clock arrival of anyone who matters - a childhood friend, a beloved professor, a son or daughter, a little grandchild. The heart elevates at the thought of each of these, and more: a day in the research library, a holiday concert, a flight to Wales, a box of new paints, the first day of school. At least this is how I am and always have been. The note could have been meant for you.
As for the PhD, (the beginning not the end of an era) - there were so many reasons for having originally wanted it, but nearly all of them changed over the years. I'm really delighted with the one that remained. Thanks for the kind words. ~ H
PS The new photo is very fetching.
There is no way I would have
There is no way I would have put it in a box, just as the things we assume represent something can have different meanings in different contexts. Candles? Wine? Don't we enjoy them apart from the regular 'romantic' moments?
Harrison, when I read it, I knew it could have been me for I felt I was there.
Re. the PhD, needs change with time and so does how those needs manifest themselves. Glad that what has remained in the one that is what your soul sings with. Perhaps, that was meant to be from the very start.
~F
PS: Thank you. Just my usual need to 'update' .
Thank you, Megan.
Very kind of you to say so. Thank you too for the amazing necklace of grapes and light. It was an extraordinary gift of thoughtfulness and dedication. A unique PhD gift.
~H
Ph.D Necklace
Thank you very much Harrison. My card and gift were meant only with pure truth and feeling. Congratulations again for your accomplishment and wonderful process. Hopefully both will remind you always of your grandparents and all the wonderful times with them.
Megan
Thanks for the update,
Thanks for the update, Farzana. Unsurprisingly, I agree with you! I've had a chance to read a few of your recent posts which is always an engaging exercise. Looking forward to responding when I figure out what my response is. Marvelously complex. ~H