Author: Marty Luster

“These are times that try men’s souls; the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” Thomas Paine

Thank you, Pete, for a lifetime of music, hope, courage and  patriotism for every season.

Dog Bar Breakwater

It’s quite a simple structure, given its task:
blocks of granite, each one thirteen tons, piled neatly
and securely on and next to the other.
So far it has survived more than one hundred
years of tides, winds, waves, heat of summer and the
numbing cold of winter.

Like a mother’s guarding arm, it protects our boats
from the dangerous surf, deflects the fury
of the sometimes angry sea; provides a measure
of calm to our harbor and is home to the beacon
and signal that guide us safely to our berths.

On fine days, it is a place of walks, picnics,
picture taking, artists painting, people fishing,
quiet talks and, each September, we watch schooners
head out for their annual race into the past.

On stormy  days, if one dares go out to see,
we witness giant sea upon sea doing their best
to crest over the topmost blocks as if to challenge
he very notion that we, by force of will,
can make any harbor safe.

It is a noble effort that makes me wonder:
we have built the Dog Bar breakwater, but
can we, on our stormy days, prevent ourselves
from dashing recklessly upon  hidden bars
by careful placement of blocks of wisdom,
and, on the good days, walk along the tops amid
waves of joy and gratitude?

Marty Luster

Encore. Originally posted January 22, 2012. Video clips January 25, 2014.

 “It soon got so cold that the men rushed to close the doors. When they had shut them and the room was again silent, they saw that several women had begun to cry. The women said it was because of the numbing air that had washed over their bare shoulders, but even strangers embraced sadly as they coasted into the new year and felt its strength commencing.”

Mark Halprin, Winter’s Tale.

Brad Story of Essex, Ma. is a sculptor who focuses on the theme of flight. I recently visited with Brad and his wife Beth at his studio on the Essex  marsh. I hope you are as intrigued and impressed by his work as I am.

For more information visit http://www.bradstory.com

IN SEINE FIELD

She’s in Seine Field, east of a nearby gate,

with her arms aiming at the fearsome sky,

as if proclaiming to all the trees, and

all the birds,  all the humans, and all the

creeping beings, all the grasses, all the flowers,

all the elements of earth and sky and

all the spirits of those that came before

and the force of  those who will come after:

I am here and I am perfect!

I absorb your bright sun, and rejoice in

your stormy clouds. I shake away your salt

winds that have taken many good men down ,

and I withstand your blasts of cold and your

furious summer fires; my roots are deep

and suck the nourishment of this dear land;

my limbs, long and limber , protect my core;

my elegant needles are dense and lush.

I am here and I am perfect!

And even when that day comes when branches

drop and my limbs crack and my trunk decays;

when my glorious needles curl , yellow

and fall, when even light breezes threaten

my ability to stand straight and tall  –

even when that end day comes and I fear

I can’t provide shade to the wanderer

and home to the joyous souls of Seine Field, still

I am here and I am perfect!

Marty Luster

Encore, first posted January 1, 2012 in memory of Barbara’s mom.

Wakodahatchee Wetlands in Delray Beach Fla., was constructed on 50 acres of unused utility land. Each day about two million gallons of highly treated wastewater is pumped into the wetlands which is home to over 150 species of birds and other aquatic fauna.

This sucker has a wingspan of about 7 inches. Found on Long Key, Fla.

VIDEO New Year Plunge 2014