'To Be Great, Be Whole'

 

   picture from https://atelier49lisboa.com/

  

ODE

  "To be great, be whole: nothing that's you
         Should you exaggerate or exclude.
In each thing, be all. Give all you are
         In the least you ever do.
The whole moon, because it rides so high,
         Is reflected in each pool."

Fernando Pessoa

This very interesting postcard was sent to me recently from a 'postcrosser' in Portugal. The image is called  "navegar o mar da calçada" which the artist, Hauke Vagt, translates as "navigating the sea of cobblestones".

Hauke says, "The figure in the foreground is supposed to remind you of Fernando Pessoa- famous Portuguese writer, maybe scattering his unwritten poetry into the wind. The ship is a mix between a caravela portuguesa and the old dilapidated houses in Alfama district where I used to live when I drew this.

It was an attempt to express "saudade" visually and the sadness about old Lisbon changing."

 

I had never heard of Fernando Pessoa until communicating with the artist, then realised that I had encountered the poet's bronze statue outside a cafe a few years ago when visiting Lisbon - a strange coincidence.

 

I love this ode and the idea that in everything I do I should be whole, and not exaggerate or exclude any part of myself.

 

Writing prompts:

• Look at the postcard picture for a couple of minutes then write in response to it; put down whatever comes into your mind.
  
• Do you "give all you are in the least thing you ever do"? Is it a good approach to life? Is it easy or difficult to 'be whole'? Explore these questions in your writing. 
• The discovery of this postcard and its link to my photo was a bit of serendipity. Write about something serendipitous in your life. 
• Do you feel any sadness (like the artist) about your home town or city changing? Write about it.