English scientist Luke Howard studied clouds and in 1803 categorized them and gave them their present names. He classified clouds according to their visual characteristics. Terms, such as cirrus and stratus, are applied on the basis of visual experience - how high the cloud is; what density and texture it has. He doesn't differentiate on the basis of some hidden or secret characteristic veiled from our eyes.
Blogger Kuni San invites his readers to produce lines of poetic text to suit the wonderful cameo paintings he produces and presents on an almost daily basis for our enjoyment.
In fact, I think it is such a good idea that I have taken part myself. My submission is in today's Comments to his post Something Different no. 3.
There are no rewards to be won but when we see the artworks and read the corresponding texts that people have conjured up from their imaginations we get the feeling that we are all winners. Bruce Springsteen, tonight on tour in Austria, succinctly puts it: Nobody wins unless everybody wins.
I'd be more than pleased and delighted to read in my Comments box any lines of suitable verse or text that you the reader might like to post to my photo of the midsummer sky above Lake Constance (or Bodensee), the third largest lake in Europe; a lake the Rhine flows through and a lake shared by three countries: Austria, Germany and Switzerland.
the probe has landed
ReplyDeleteit has begun to send back data
this is the first image
to be processed. the sun
is the star at the centre
from here just one point
of light among many
in the northern constellations
and the clouds the clouds
just as we expected
from the flyby photographs
just like our own
Thanks Dominic. You may experience problems with your probe's electronics - a category X1.4 solar storm is on the way.
ReplyDeleteDazzled by the sunlight
ReplyDeleteon the clouds. I can only look
and marvel at its beauty.
Thanks for your comment about reading Dan Brown Gwil. I do agree that reading good writing is so very important - at present I am into Alexander McCall Smith and his Scotland Street novels - I do so love his turn of phrase.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the sentiments in verse Pat. You are right - there are times when we can only stand and look at nature and simply marvel.
ReplyDeleteRe Dan Brown I think this is the third I've read. They are all pretty much the same but they are I think solid summer vacation fodder.