Shawn L. Bird

Original poetry, commentary, and fiction. All copyrights reserved.

An Outlandish memory May 2, 2015

Filed under: OUTLANDERishness — Shawn L. Bird @ 9:53 pm
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Scenes from Starz series Outlander episode #113 which aired today are based on events in a short story called “Virgins” which was published in an anthology called Dangerous Women (edited by George R R Martin) in December 2013.

I am particularly fond of that novella, because once upon a time…  (actually it was August 5, 2013) author Diana Gabaldon posted daily lines for “Virgins” and she dedicated them to me.  #ThisOnesForShawnLBird #poetess

ThisonesforShawnLBirdpoetess

Whenever I read the passage, it gives me goosebumps.  What an honour to receive a dedication from an internationally best selling author!  If you want to read the daily line selection, it’s here: http://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1rlp46l

(An added memory is that I purchased my copy of Dangerous Women from The Poisoned Pen in Phoenix that Christmas) 🙂  I like the idea of poetesses being dangerous women, though in fact, no such proof is proffered in the story, beyond Ian’s suppositions in this section. 🙂

 

poem-sacrifice October 24, 2014

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:24 am
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An Argyll and Sutherland Highlander’s

simple service:

honour guard,

in respectful silence, stand proud

beneath a towering arch,

the bronze visages of

the nation’s memorial to those

fallen in foreign wars,

Keeping faith at the tomb

of the unknown soldier,

Clad in kilt  and jacket,

green as the fields of France,

red and white stockings over

shining white spats,

bronze warriors towering above

wept

as one of Princess Louise’s Highlanders

fell.

.

.

.

This poem references the powerful political cartoon by Bruce MacKinnon drawn in the aftermath of the shooting of Corporal Nathan Cirillo (a reservist with the Argylls and Sutherland Highlanders) on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, October 22, 2014:

Here is Corp Cirillo guarding the national war memorial:

The Argylls and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada on parade.

(I thought I was just posting links to original sites, but the images are showing up. Copyright remains with original sources).

 

poem- Misty’s shoes April 17, 2014

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 1:21 pm
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I’m wearing Misty’s shoes;

her ghost clings to them

billowing behind the clicking heels

in the hallway.

Misty set these shoes

on the foot rest of her

wheelchair, but I’m dancing

to her memory down corridors,

blowing kisses to the sky

through windows

wide with wishes.

.

.

.

A few years ago on eBay I bought a pair of black and white Fluevog Harlows:  T-straps on towering spool heels .  Misty’s sister told me about how they were selling her shoes after her untimely death from cystic-fibrosis.  I was so impressed with what she told me about her feisty sister over a brief correspondance, that I created a shoe-oholic character called Misty in the Grace books 3 & 4.  The manuscript is sitting on a shelf, waiting for polishing.  Someday you’ll get to meet her fictional namesake.  In the meantime, you can admire her excellent taste in shoes:

John Fluevog Harlow (Black/White Crackle) - Spectators Dress Shoes : heels blackandwhite spectator

 

memory- This One’s for Shawn August 9, 2013

Filed under: anecdotes,Friendship,video — Shawn L. Bird @ 9:36 am
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Earlier this week, Diana Gabaldon dedicated her Daily Lines to me, and sent out to her 250,000 fans on Facebook and Twitter the message #ThisOnesForShawnLBird.  I was just remembering another time when my heart was warmed to bursting by a dedication from someone I looked up to.

Once upon a time, when I was 15 or so, a boy I adored worked once a week as a Disc Jockey on a late night radio show in Calgary.  Some nights, even though I lived 650 km away on the other side of the Rocky Mountains,  I could listen to him on the skip that happens when meteorological conditions were good.  One night I called him up to say I was listening, and he dedicated this song to me.  I have the dedication on tape, and when I hear it, it still chokes me up!  If you have fond memories of your first love, you may want to get out a handkerchief.

“This one goes all the way out to Kelowna, BC.  This one’s for Shawn…”

.

.

(I sing “Share this thought with me” as “You shared the start with me”  Hmm.  Either way!

How about you?  Do you have fond memories of a very public dedication you received from someone special?  Tell us about it!

 

honor and love December 13, 2011

Filed under: Reading — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:12 am
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“A romantic or a novelist might count the world well lost for love.  So far as Grey’s own opinion counted, a love that sacrificed honor was less honest than simple lust, and degraded those who professed to glory in it.” 

Diana Gabaldon, Lord John and the Private Matter

 

 
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