Summer Solstice Rediscovered
June 20 - July 7. In this mouth-watering episode, Kit and Alexis celebrate the longest day of the year by dining al fresco! Our co-hosts prepare for picnics and barbecues, consider the outdoor activities of berry picking and fishing, and savor cooling foods. In Hiro's Corner, an examination of what we enjoy about shorter nights.
June 20 - July 7
In this mouth-watering episode, Kit and Alexis celebrate the longest day of the year by dining al fresco! Our co-hosts prepare for picnics and barbecues, consider the outdoor activities of berry picking and fishing, and savor cooling foods. In Hiro's Corner, an examination of what we enjoy about shorter nights.
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Check out our companion playlist on Spotify for this episode.
Summer Solstice
Spotify Companion Playlist
Poems Featured in this Episode
Summer, by James Russell Lowell. Excerpt from The Vision of Sir Launfal.
Now is the high tide of the year,
And whatever of life hath ebbed away
Comes flooding back with a ripply cheer,
Into every bare inlet and creek and bay.
We may shut our eyes, but we can not help knowing
That skies are clear and grass is growing;
The breeze comes whispering in our ear,
That dandelions are blossoming near,
That maize has sprouted, that streams are flowing,
That the river is bluer than the sky,
That the robin is plastering his house hard by;
And if the breeze kept the good news back
For other couriers we should not lack;
We could guess it all by yon heifer's lowing,—
And hark! how clear bold chanticleer,
Warmed with the new wine of the year,
Tells all in his lusty crowing.
***
Summer by Jackie Meyer
At very long last the summer is here!
It's barbecue time with coolers of beer,
Watermelon slices for children at play
Hydrants will soon be exploding their spray!
Laughter is heard from the tables outdoors
As merchandise beckons from neighboring stores.
Business booms for my man on the street
His cart pictured with colors of great things to eat.
Mangoes, papayas, and melons galore!
Cherries and berries and so very much more!
Yes! Summer is here, it has finally begun,
Let's toast to a future of days in the sun!
***
At Stonehenge by Katherine Lee Bates (excerpt)
Grim stones whose gray lips keep your secret well,
Our hands that touch you touch an ancient terror,
An ancient woe, colossal citadel
Of some fierce faith, some heaven-affronting error.
Rude-built, as if young Titans on this wold
Once played with ponderous blocks a striding giant
Had brought from oversea, till child more bold
Tumbled their temple down with foot defiant.
***
Excerpt from “Goblin Market” by Christina Rossetti
Morning and evening
Maids heard the goblins cry:
'Come buy our orchard fruits,
Come buy, come buy:
Apples and quinces,
Lemons and oranges,
Plump unpecked cherries,
Melons and raspberries,
Bloom-down-cheeked peaches,
Swart-headed mulberries,
Wild free-born cranberries,
Crab-apples, dewberries,
Pine-apples, blackberries,
Apricots, strawberries;--
All ripe together
In summer weather,--
Morns that pass by,
Fair eves that fly;
Come buy, come buy:
Our grapes fresh from the vine,
Pomegranates full and fine,
Dates and sharp bullaces,
Rare pears and greengages,
Damsons and bilberries,
Taste them and try:
Currants and gooseberries,
Bright-fire-like barberries,
Figs to fill your mouth,
Citrons from the South,
Sweet to tongue and sound to eye;
Come buy, come buy.'
***
Are these juice-stained hands
mine, or my grandmother’s?
Blackberry season
— Kit
(inspired by Margaret Atwood’s "Blackberries")
***
Excerpt from “Blueberries” by Robert Frost
Blueberries as big as the end of your thumb,
Real sky-blue, and heavy, and ready to drum
In the cavernous pail of the first one to come!
And all ripe together, not some of them green
And some of them ripe! You ought to have seen!
***
The Queen of Hearts
She made some tarts,
All on a summer's day
The Knave of Hearts
He stole those tarts,
And took them clean away.
The King of Hearts
Called for the tarts,
And beat the knave full sore;
The Knave of Hearts
Brought back the tarts,
And vowed he'd steal no more.
— Anonymous
***
A handful of cherries
She gave me in passing,
The wizened old woman,
And wished me good luck-
And again I was dreaming,
A boy in the sunshine,
And life but an orchard
Of cherries to pluck.
— Wilfrid Wilson Gibson
***
“Les Temps des Cerises” - words by Jean-Baptiste Clément
When are in the time of cherries
The gay nightingale and the mockingbird rejoice together.
The pretty girls have folly in their heads
And the lovers sun in their hearts.
When we sing the time of the cherries
The mockingbird sing far better.
But the time of the cherries is very short,
When we go by two by two to pick hanging earrings,
Love cherries dressed in bright red like rubies,
Falling under the leaves like drops of blood,
But the time of the cherries is very short,
Coral earrings that we pick up while we dream!
***
Midsummer, by William Cullen Bryant
A power is on the earth and in the air,
From which the vital spirit shrinks afraid,
And shelters him in nooks of deepest shade,
From the hot steam and from the fiery glare.
Look forth upon the earth—her thousand plants
Are smitten; even the dark sun-loving maize
Faints in the field beneath the torrid blaze;
The herd beside the shaded fountain pants;
For life is driven from all the landscape brown;
The bird hath sought his tree, the snake his den,
The trout floats dead in the hot stream, and men
Drop by the sunstroke in the populous town:
As if the Day of Fire had dawned, and sent
Its deadly breath into the firmament.
***
Plum-wine making complete
A cat arrives
— Murayama Furusato
***
Aging plum wine
Made for someone
— Nihei Yoko
***
In her pajamas
Mom shakes the plum wine bottle
— Sonoko Tamura
***
Heaven, by Rupert Brooke (excerpt)
Fish (fly-replete, in depth of June,
Dawdling away their wat’ry noon)
Ponder deep wisdom, dark or clear,
Each secret fishy hope or fear.
Fish say, they have their Stream and Pond;
But is there anything Beyond?
***
In a water basin
they nod to each other -
gourds and eggplants
— Yosa Buson
***
kneading eggplants…
purple on salt remains
like light after the sunset
— Yabuki Nobuhiko
***
The parent bee
its honey being stolen
buzzes near
— Issa
***
The Song of the Bee, by Marian Douglas
Buzz! buzz! buzz!
This is the song of the bee.
His legs are of yellow;
A jolly, good fellow,
And yet a great worker is he.
In days that are sunny
He's getting his honey;
In days that are cloudy
He's making his wax:
On pinks and on lilies,
And gay daffodillies,
And columbine blossoms,
He levies a tax!
Buzz! buzz! buzz!
The sweet-smelling clover,
He, humming, hangs over;
The scent of the roses
Makes fragrant his wings:
He never gets lazy;
From thistle and daisy,
And weeds of the meadow,
Some treasure he brings.
Buzz! buzz! buzz!
From morning's first light
Till the coming of night,
He's singing and toiling
The summer day through.
Oh! we may get weary,
And think work is dreary;
'Tis harder by far
To have nothing to do.
***
Chopsticks float
In the water
the end of the somen nagashi slide
— Hakko Yokoyama
***
Into the flow of the somen Nagashi
Chopsticks
Some skillful, others clumsy
— Yamada Yoshiyuki
***
Nagashi somen
I am eating
What coolness tastes like
— Junzo Yoshida
***
Moonlight, Summer Moonlight by Emily Jane Brontë
’Tis moonlight, summer moonlight,
All soft and still and fair;
The solemn hour of midnight
Breathes sweet thoughts everywhere,
But most where trees are sending
Their breezy boughs on high,
Or stooping low are lending
A shelter from the sky.
And there in those wild bowers
A lovely form is laid;
Green grass and dew-steeped flowers
Wave gently round her head.
***
Seasonal Recipes:
By kigo:
Blueberries: Blueberry Tiramisu “Bluemisu”
Gooseberries: Gooseberry, Meadowsweet, and Wild Strawberry Jelly
Plums: Plum Barbecue Sauce
Apricots: Apricot Compote
Eggplant: Grilled Eggplant - or - Eggplant Shigiyaki
Cucumber: Cucumber and Tomato Salad
“Gone Fishin’”: Basil Rosemary Grilled Trout
Music Featured in this Episode
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Overture via MusOpen
Midsummer Meadow Party by Lobo Loco
The Butterfly, Kids on the Mountain by Slante
Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K. 581 performed by Musicians from Malboro
Americana Jam by The Underscore Orkestra
Summer, Movt. 1, Allefro non molto by Antonio Vivaldi performed by John Harrison
Honeysuckle Rose by Fats Waller performed by Chris Whittaker
Les Temps Des Cerises performed by Chris Whittaker
Flight of the Bumble Bee via Wikimedia Commons
Calm by Zylo-Ziko
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Nocturne via MusOpen
Visual Examples of Seasonal Words
The Beginning of Spring Rediscovered
February 4 - 20. In this hopeful episode, "The Beginning of Spring," Alexis and Kit notice signs of winter's end among the scents of the trees, the songs of birds, and a special, perhaps romantic, feeling in the air. Hiro's Corner takes a look at a boggy perennial.
February 4 - 20
In this hopeful episode, "The Beginning of Spring," Alexis and Kit notice signs of winter's end among the scents of the trees, the songs of birds, and a special, perhaps romantic, feeling in the air. Hiro's Corner takes a look at a boggy perennial.
Poems featured in this episode:
Hope by E. (Edith) Nesbit
O thrush, is it true?
Your song tells
Of a world born anew,
Of fields gold with buttercups, woodlands all blue
With hyacinth bells;
Of primroses deep
In the moss of the lane,
Of a Princess asleep
And dear magic to do.
Will the sun wake the princess? O thrush, is it true?
Will Spring come again?
Will Spring come again?
Now at last
With soft shine and rain
Will the violet be sweet where the dead leaves have lain?
Will Winter be past?
In the brown of the copse
Will white wind-flowers star through
Where the last oak-leaf drops?
Will the daisies come too,
And the may and the lilac? Will Spring come again?
O thrush, is it true?
***
More than shadow
Is the wind
Returning cold
— Teiko Inahata
***
The return of cold
Then the return of cold again
Springtime
— Nishiyama Hakun
***
Two hoes hang on the wall
Shallow Spring
— Murakami Kijo
***
Shallow Spring is coming
And already I'm in the garden
— Sekitei Hara
***
He Knows No Winter by Sudie Stuart Hager
He knows no winter, he who loves the soil,
For, stormy days, when he is free from toil,
He plans his summer crops, selects his seeds
From bright-paged catalogues for garden needs.
When looking out upon frost-silvered fields,
He visualizes autumn's golden yields;
He sees in snow and sleet and icy rain
Precious moisture for his early grain;
He hears spring-heralds in the storm's turmoil
He knows no winter, he who loves the soil.
***
As evening deepens
The scent of burning fields
Rises in the air
— Inahata Teiko
***
The morning’s blue sky of Aso
Eagerly await
The burning fields
- Matuso Basho
***
February by Jane [Goodwin] Austin
I thought the world was cold in death;
The flowers, the birds, all life was gone,
For January's bitter breath
Had slain the bloom and hushed the song.
And still the earth is cold and white,
And mead and forest yet are bare;
But there's a something in the light
That says the germ of life is there.
***
Evening In A Sugar Orchard by Robert Frost
From where I lingered in a lull in march
outside the sugar-house one night for choice,
I called the fireman with a careful voice
And bade him leave the pan and stoke the arch:
'O fireman, give the fire another stoke,
And send more sparks up chimney with the smoke.'
I thought a few might tangle, as they did,
Among bare maple boughs, and in the rare
Hill atmosphere not cease to glow,
And so be added to the moon up there.
The moon, though slight, was moon enough to show
On every tree a bucket with a lid,
And on black ground a bear-skin rug of snow.
The sparks made no attempt to be the moon.
They were content to figure in the trees
As Leo, Orion, and the Pleiades.
And that was what the boughs were full of soon.
***
If not for the call
of the bush warbler coming
out of the valley,
who then would be aware of
the arrival of springtime?
— Ôe no Chisato, from the Kokinshū
***
Singing practice
every morning
with the warbler
— Issa
***
Even the warbler’s voice
gets hoarse -
snow still on Fuji
— Chiyo-jo
***
The warbler
has been perching on that plum-tree
for all eternity
— Onitsura
***
A warbler sings so sweet…
and by the eaves…
plum blossoms
— Buson
***
When the east wind blows,
Send me your perfume,
Blossoms of
the plum:
Though your lord be absent,
Forget not the spring.
— Sugawara Michizane
***
As on the plum comes
blossom after blossom, so
comes the warmth of spring.
— Ransetsu
***
All the snow melts --
everywhere the fragrance
of wild plum blossoms
— Tagami Kikusha
***
When everything has faded they alone shine forth,
encroaching on the charms of smaller gardens.
Their scattered shadows fall lightly on clear water,
their subtle scent pervades the moonlit dusk.
— Lin Bu
***
Lover cat
as a cat in love
has its own way
— Nagata Koui
***
While hitting
the heads of dandelions
cats in love
— Issa
***
Love drunk
Chasing after a chicken
A male cat
— Issa
***
Plum blossom scent
sends him off carousing...
lazy cat
— Issa
***
Cats in love
when they stop in my bedroom
a hazy moon
— Basho
***
Hearts Were Made to Give Away by Annette Wynne
Hearts were made to give away
On Valentine's good day;
Wrap them up in dainty white,
Send them off the thirteenth night.
Any kind of heart that's handy—
Hearts of lace, and hearts of candy,
Hearts all trimmed with ribbands fine
Send for good St. Valentine.
Hearts were made to give away
On Valentine's dear day.
***
1886 ST. VALENTINE'S DAY By Christina Rossetti
Winter's latest snowflake is the snowdrop flower,
Yellow crocus kindles the first flame of the Spring,
At that time appointed, at that day and hour
When life reawakens and hope in everything.
Such a tender snowflake in the wintry weather,
Such a feeble flamelet for chilled St. Valentine,--
But blest be any weather which finds us still together,
My pleasure and my treasure O blessed Mother mine.
***
Pancakes by Christina Rossetti
Mix a pancake,
Stir a pancake,
Pop it in the pan;
Fry the pancake,
Toss the pancake—
Catch it if you can.
***
Another year is gone with the sound of the firecrackers.
Spring is coming, we can feel the warm wind. It is time to drink the tu su wine.
On this bright new year’s day, thousands of families are busy.
Every family is busy with changing the old scrolls and putting up the new ones.
— Wang Anshi, Song Dynasty
A Seasonal Recipe: Chocolate Pancakes
Via Pretty. Simple. Sweet. Visit their website for more information and tips and tricks!
Ingredients
Pancakes
1 1/3 cups (185g) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (25g) cocoa powder (I use Dutch-processed)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/3 cup (65g) granulated sugar
1 cup (240 ml) whole milk
3 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil (or 45g melted butter)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup (85g) chocolate chips or chunks
butter or oil , for cooking
Chocolate Ganache Sauce
140 g (5 oz.) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy cream
Instructions
In a large bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt (or whisk well with a whisk). Set aside.
In a separate medium bowl, whisk together egg and sugar until well combined. Add milk, oil (or melted butter), and vanilla extract. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir just until combined and moistened. Do not over mix. Mix in chocolate chips or chunks. Set batter aside and make the chocolate sauce.
Chocolate sauce: In a medium heatproof bowl, combine chocolate and heavy cream. Microwave in 20- to 30-second increments, mixing in between, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Set aside while making the pancakes. I like to pour it over the pancakes while it’s warm.
Cook the pancakes: Heat a griddle or skillet over medium heat. Coat with butter or oil. For each pancake, drop 1/4 cup of batter onto skillet. Cook 1-2 minutes, until surface of pancakes have some bubbles and the bottom appears to be done. Flip carefully and cook another 1-2 minutes. Transfer to a plate and if you want you can cover the plate loosely with aluminum foil to keep warm. Coat the skillet with butter or oil before every pancake or batch of pancakes to prevent sticking.
Serve immediately with chocolate sauce (rewarm sauce in the microwave for a few seconds if needed).
Visual Examples of Seasonal Words
Heavy Snow Rediscovered
December 6 - 20. This episode of Season by Season finds Kit and Alexis preparing for the darkening days of winter. Together they discuss cold weather and snow, are cheered by winter birdsong, and find light and warmth in friendship during this merry season. Hiro's Corner explores the snowy landscapes that shape our artistic ideas of wintertime.
December 6 - 20
This episode of Season by Season finds Kit and Alexis preparing for the darkening days of winter. Together they discuss cold weather and snow, are cheered by winter birdsong, and find light and warmth in friendship during this merry season. Hiro's Corner explores the snowy landscapes that shape our artistic ideas of wintertime.
Poems featured in this episode:
A December Day, by Sara Teasdale
Dawn turned on her purple pillow— And late, late came the winter day,
Snow was curved to the boughs of the willow.
— The sunless world was white and grey.
At noon we heard a blue-jay scolding,
— At five the last thin light was lost
From snow-banked windows faintly holding
— The feathery filigree of frost.
***
It Snows, by Hannah Flagg Gould
It snows! it snows! from out the sky
The feathered flakes, how fast they fly,
Like little birds, that don't know why
They're on the chase, from place to place,
While neither can the other trace.
It snows! it snows! a merry play
Is o'er us, on this heavy day!
To-morrow will the storm be done;
Then, out will come the golden sun:
And we shall see, upon the run
Before his beams, in sparkling streams,
What now a curtain o'er him seems.
And thus, with life, it ever goes;
'T is shade and shine!—It snows! it snows!
***
I Heard a Bird Sing, by Oliver Herford
I heard a bird sing
In the dark of December
A magical thing
And sweet to remember.
'We are nearer to Spring
Than we were in September,'
I heard a bird sing
In the dark of December."
***
The Cardinal, by Alice E. Ball
When autumn woods are bare and dead,
A crested bird, of cardinal red,
Sways like an oak-leaf overhead;
And sighs, "Drear! drear! Drear!"
When winter woods are white with snow,
And drifts pile high as wild winds blow,
Like flame this torchlike bird doth glow;
And cries, "Whew! whew! whew!"
***
Do all the birds
To the southlands go?
No!
No!
Oh, no!
Chickadee,
Sparrow,
Bunting,
Crow
Care not a whit
When the wild winds blow.
They care not a whit,
They’re sad not a bit,
They think naught of it,
When the wild winds blow.
(Anon.)
***
Winterberry branch
Calls winter birds for breakfast
I will feed you now
— Amy Ludwig VanDerwater
***
the wren wishes to be in the snow not the blossoms
— Chiyo-jo
***
Dust of Snow, by Robert Frost
The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree
Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.
***
Excerpt from Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott:
...Mrs. March got her wet things off, her warm slippers on, and sitting down in the easy chair, drew Amy to her lap, preparing to enjoy the happiest hour of her busy day. The girls flew about, trying to make things comfortable, each in her own way. Meg arranged the tea table, Jo brought wood and set chairs, dropping, over–turning, and clattering everything she touched. Beth trotted to and fro between parlor and kitchen, quiet and busy, while Amy gave directions to everyone, as she sat with her hands folded.
***
There’s rosemary and rue. These keep
Seeming and savor all the winter long.
Grace and remembrance be to you.
- William Shakespeare (Winter’s Tale, Act 4, Scene 4)
***
There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance; pray you, love,
remember. And there is pansies, that’s for thoughts.
-William Shakespeare (Hamlet, Act 4, Scene 5)
***
The Christmas Holly by Eliza Cook
The holly! the holly! oh, twine it with bay—
Come give the holly a song;
For it helps to drive stern winter away,
With his garment so sombre and long.
It peeps through the trees with its berries of red,
And its leaves of burnish’d green,
When the flowers and fruits have long been dead,
And not even the daisy is seen,
Then sing to the holly, the Christmas holly,
That hangs over peasant and king:
While we laugh and carouse ’neath its glitt’ring boughs,
To the Christmas holly we’ll sing.
***
People, Look East, by Eleanor Farjeon
People, look east. The time is near
Of the crowning of the year.
Make your house fair as you are able,
Trim the hearth and set the table.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the guest, is on the way.
***
From "The Shortest Day," by Susan Cooper
“So the shortest day came, and the year died,
And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world
Came people singing, dancing,
To drive the dark away.”
***
Night walks with a heavy step
Round yard and hearth,
As the sun departs from earth,
Shadows are brooding.
There in our dark house,
Walking with lit candles,
Santa Lucia, Santa Lucia!
Night walks grand, yet silent,
Now hear its gentle wings,
In every room so hushed,
Whispering like wings.
Look, at our threshold stands,
White-clad with light in her hair,
Santa Lucia, Santa Lucia!
Darkness shall take flight soon,
From earth's valleys.
So she speaks
Wonderful words to us:
A new day will rise again
From the rosy sky…
Santa Lucia, Santa Lucia!
***
The Feast of Lights, by Emma Lazarus
Kindle the taper like the steadfast star
Ablaze on evening's forehead o'er the earth,
And add each night a lustre till afar
An eightfold splendor shine above thy hearth.
Clash, Israel, the cymbals, touch the lyre,
Blow the brass trumpet and the harsh-tongued horn;
Chant psalms of victory till the heart takes fire,
The Maccabean spirit leap new-born.
***
In the Window
In the window where you can see the glow of
my menorah on newly fallen snow,
I will set you one little candle on this, the first night of Hanukkah.
St. Lucia Day Buns
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup butter
1/4 lukewarm water
1 package dry yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon saffron
2 3/4 cups flour
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
24 raisins (currants)
1. Warm the milk in the small saucepan over low heat. Cut the butter into small pieces. Add the butter pieces to the warm milk and stir, then turn off the heat.
2. Measure the lukewarm water into the large mixing bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the water. Stir well. Set the bowl aside for 5 minutes.
3. Add the warm milk and melted butter to the saffron. Stir in the sugar, egg, salt and saffron. Then add 1 1/2 cups flour and stir until smooth.
4. Add enough of the remaining flour so that you can shape the dough into a ball. Save some of the remaining flour for kneading the dough.
5. Put the dough on the floured cutting board. Dust your hands with flour and knead the dough. Add flour when the dough gets sticky.
6. After 5 to 10 minutes of kneading, you will have a smooth ball of dough. It should spring back when you poke it with your finger. Cover the dough with the towel and let it rest while you wash and dry the mixing bowl.
7. Spread cooking oil in the large bowl. Roll the dough in the oil until it is coated. Cover the bowl with the towel and set in a warm place to rise. After 45 minutes, the dough should be twice as large. If not, check it again in 15 minutes.
8. Punch down the dough. Then divide it into 6 sections. Take one section and divide it in half. Roll each half into an 8 inch rope. Cross the two ropes in the middle. Then coil the ends in tight circles. Shape 5 more buns in the same way.
9. Place the buns 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Cover with the towel. Let the buns rise for 30 to 45 minutes until they double in size. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees while they are rising.
10. Mix the egg and water with the fork in the small bowl. Brush this mixture lightly over the top of each bun. Decorate the buns with raisins.
11. Bake the buns for 15 to 20 minutes. When the buns are golden brown, move them to the wire rack to cool.
Serve with coffee and enjoy!
Music Featured in this Podcast
Snow Day by Pictures of a Floating World
Mo-Oz-Tzur by Glenn Tompkins (with permission)
O Frondens by Hildegard of Bingen Peace Christmas by Lobo Loco
Deck the Halls by USAFB Concert Band
Sonata No. 8 by Ludwig Van Beethoven performed by Daniel Veesey
Wind Quintet Op. 78 by August Klughart
Violincello and Orchestra in B Minor by Antonin Dvorak
Flute Concerto in G Major by Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach
Scherzo by Goens performed by John Michel
The Beginning of Winter Rediscovered
November 7 - 21. In this brisk episode of Season by Season, Alexis and Kit savor the last moments of autumn. Join them as they kick through the fallen leaves under persimmon trees, prepare their appetites for heartier fare, and learn about the festival of lights Diwali. Hiro's Corner features an interlude with a uniquely autumnal kind of rain.
November 6 - 21
In this brisk episode of Season by Season, Alexis and Kit savor the last moments of autumn. Join them as they kick through the fallen leaves under persimmon trees, prepare their appetites for heartier fare, and learn about the festival of lights Diwali. Hiro's Corner features an interlude with a uniquely autumnal kind of rain.
Listen and subscribe on Apple and Spotify.
The Beginning of Winter Spotify Companion Playlist
Poems featured in this episode:
"November" by Elizabeth Stoddard
Much have I spoken of the faded leaf;
Long have I listened to the wailing wind,
And watched it ploughing through the heavy clouds,
For autumn charms my melancholy mind.
When autumn comes, the poets sing a dirge:
The year must perish; all the flowers are dead;
The sheaves are gathered; and the mottled quail
Runs in the stubble, but the lark has fled!
Still, autumn ushers in the Christmas cheer,
The holly-berries and the ivy-tree:
They weave a chaplet for the Old Year’s bier,
These waiting mourners do not sing for me!
I find sweet peace in depths of autumn woods,
Where grow the ragged ferns and roughened moss;
The naked, silent trees have taught me this,—
The loss of beauty is not always loss!
***
a shooting star...
unable to use up the length of
the vast sky
— Shugyo Takaha
***
Slurping ramen
In Kitakata
The north wind blows - hyuuuu!
—Takasawa Yoichi
***
After a climb
To the mountain top
A ramen shop
—Takasawa Yoichi
***
A jumbo serving of clams
For my ramen
The cold rain pelts
—Akabane Toshiko
***
A cold, gray day, a lowering sky,
A lonesome pigeon wheeling by;
The soft, blue smoke that hangs and fades,
The shivering crane that flaps and wades;
Dead leaves that, whispering, quit their tree,
The peace the river sings to me;
The chill aloofness of the Fall—
I love it all!
—Unknown
***
today too, today too
autumn rain...
mountainside house
—Issa
***
Cold Winter shower!
See all the people running
Across the Seta Bridge
-Josa
***
The scarlet leaves
Serve as armor for the mountain
Against the rain
—Chobane
***
November Night by Adelaide Crapsey
Listen ...
With faint, dry sound,
Like steps of passing ghosts,
The leaves, frost-crisp'd, break free from the trees
And fall.
***
fallen leaves--
not a single crow
is irksome
— Issa
***
the wind has brought
enough to build a fire...
fallen leaves
— Issa
***
The gods are absent
everything is desolate
among the fallen leaves
— Basho
***
In the Godless Month
I wake at night and listen
to what gives voice
to a storm on this hillside . . .
the sound of falling leaves
- Monk Noin (988-1050)
***
The Consent by Howard Nemerov
Late in November, on a single night
Not even near to freezing, the ginkgo trees
That stand along the walk drop all their leaves
In one consent, and neither to rain nor to wind
But as though to time alone: the golden and green
Leaves litter the lawn today, that yesterday
Had spread aloft their fluttering fans of light.
What signal from the stars? What senses took it in?
What in those wooden motives so decided
To strike their leaves, to down their leaves,
Rebellion or surrender? and if this
Can happen thus, what race shall be exempt?
What use to learn the lessons taught by time,
If a star at any time may tell us: Now.
***
three shadows
from persimmons on a stick
on the paper door
— Hayu
***
one persimmon
droops listlessly...
winter rain
— Issa
***
on the high branch
one astringent persimmon...
like old times
— Issa
***
Write me down
As the one who loved
Persimmons
— Shiki
***
Migrating down through northern seas
Says the report
Time to buy sanma
— Toyama no Kanto
***
A gift from the north
Grilled sanma
— Chris Mathlos
***
snow crabs ...
together to Fukui
on a winter trip
— Rikei
***
Light by Rabindranath Tagore
Light, my light, the world-filling light,
the eye-kissing light,
heart-sweetening light!
Ah, the light dances, my darling, at the center of my life;
the light strikes, my darling, the chords of my love;
the sky opens, the wind runs wild, laughter passes over the earth.
The butterflies spread their sails on the sea of light.
Lilies and jasmines surge up on the crest of the waves of light.
The light is shattered into gold on every cloud, my darling,
and it scatters gems in profusion.
Mirth spreads from leaf to leaf, my darling,
and gladness without measure.
The heaven's river has drowned its banks
and the flood of joy is abroad.
Music Heard on this Episode
Organ Concerto Op. 7 No. 1 by Handel
Quintet for Piano and Winds No. 1. Largo Allegro Moderato by Mozart
Pour les agrements by Debussy"
Gymnopedie No. 1 by Erik Satie, Arrangement for alto saxophone and piano by Hernando Vitores
Piano quartet in G minor 2. Allegro ma non troppo by Brahms
Berceuse by Chopin
Quintet for piano and winds No. 1 largo allegro moderato by Mozart
Wind Quintet No. 1 Allegro ben moderato by Carl Nielsen
Diabeli Variations by Beethoven
Visual Examples of Seasonal Words
Summer Solstice
June 20 - July 7. In this mouth-watering episode, Kit and Alexis celebrate the longest day of the year by dining al fresco! Our co-hosts prepare for picnics and barbecues, consider the outdoor activities of berry picking and fishing, and savor cooling foods. In Hiro's Corner, an examination of what we enjoy about shorter nights.
June 20 - July 7
In this mouth-watering episode, Kit and Alexis celebrate the longest day of the year by dining al fresco! Our co-hosts prepare for picnics and barbecues, consider the outdoor activities of berry picking and fishing, and savor cooling foods. In Hiro's Corner, an examination of what we enjoy about shorter nights.
Listen and subscribe on Stitcher, Apple, and Spotify.
Summer Solstice
Spotify Companion Playlist
Poems Featured in this Episode
Summer, by James Russell Lowell. Excerpt from The Vision of Sir Launfal.
Now is the high tide of the year,
And whatever of life hath ebbed away
Comes flooding back with a ripply cheer,
Into every bare inlet and creek and bay.
We may shut our eyes, but we can not help knowing
That skies are clear and grass is growing;
The breeze comes whispering in our ear,
That dandelions are blossoming near,
That maize has sprouted, that streams are flowing,
That the river is bluer than the sky,
That the robin is plastering his house hard by;
And if the breeze kept the good news back
For other couriers we should not lack;
We could guess it all by yon heifer's lowing,—
And hark! how clear bold chanticleer,
Warmed with the new wine of the year,
Tells all in his lusty crowing.
***
Summer by Jackie Meyer
At very long last the summer is here!
It's barbecue time with coolers of beer,
Watermelon slices for children at play
Hydrants will soon be exploding their spray!
Laughter is heard from the tables outdoors
As merchandise beckons from neighboring stores.
Business booms for my man on the street
His cart pictured with colors of great things to eat.
Mangoes, papayas, and melons galore!
Cherries and berries and so very much more!
Yes! Summer is here, it has finally begun,
Let's toast to a future of days in the sun!
***
At Stonehenge by Katherine Lee Bates (excerpt)
Grim stones whose gray lips keep your secret well,
Our hands that touch you touch an ancient terror,
An ancient woe, colossal citadel
Of some fierce faith, some heaven-affronting error.
Rude-built, as if young Titans on this wold
Once played with ponderous blocks a striding giant
Had brought from oversea, till child more bold
Tumbled their temple down with foot defiant.
***
Excerpt from “Goblin Market” by Christina Rossetti
Morning and evening
Maids heard the goblins cry:
'Come buy our orchard fruits,
Come buy, come buy:
Apples and quinces,
Lemons and oranges,
Plump unpecked cherries,
Melons and raspberries,
Bloom-down-cheeked peaches,
Swart-headed mulberries,
Wild free-born cranberries,
Crab-apples, dewberries,
Pine-apples, blackberries,
Apricots, strawberries;--
All ripe together
In summer weather,--
Morns that pass by,
Fair eves that fly;
Come buy, come buy:
Our grapes fresh from the vine,
Pomegranates full and fine,
Dates and sharp bullaces,
Rare pears and greengages,
Damsons and bilberries,
Taste them and try:
Currants and gooseberries,
Bright-fire-like barberries,
Figs to fill your mouth,
Citrons from the South,
Sweet to tongue and sound to eye;
Come buy, come buy.'
***
Are these juice-stained hands
mine, or my grandmother’s?
Blackberry season
— Kit
(inspired by Margaret Atwood’s "Blackberries")
***
Excerpt from “Blueberries” by Robert Frost
Blueberries as big as the end of your thumb,
Real sky-blue, and heavy, and ready to drum
In the cavernous pail of the first one to come!
And all ripe together, not some of them green
And some of them ripe! You ought to have seen!
***
The Queen of Hearts
She made some tarts,
All on a summer's day
The Knave of Hearts
He stole those tarts,
And took them clean away.
The King of Hearts
Called for the tarts,
And beat the knave full sore;
The Knave of Hearts
Brought back the tarts,
And vowed he'd steal no more.
— Anonymous
***
A handful of cherries
She gave me in passing,
The wizened old woman,
And wished me good luck-
And again I was dreaming,
A boy in the sunshine,
And life but an orchard
Of cherries to pluck.
— Wilfrid Wilson Gibson
***
“Les Temps des Cerises” - words by Jean-Baptiste Clément
When are in the time of cherries
The gay nightingale and the mockingbird rejoice together.
The pretty girls have folly in their heads
And the lovers sun in their hearts.
When we sing the time of the cherries
The mockingbird sing far better.
But the time of the cherries is very short,
When we go by two by two to pick hanging earrings,
Love cherries dressed in bright red like rubies,
Falling under the leaves like drops of blood,
But the time of the cherries is very short,
Coral earrings that we pick up while we dream!
***
Midsummer, by William Cullen Bryant
A power is on the earth and in the air,
From which the vital spirit shrinks afraid,
And shelters him in nooks of deepest shade,
From the hot steam and from the fiery glare.
Look forth upon the earth—her thousand plants
Are smitten; even the dark sun-loving maize
Faints in the field beneath the torrid blaze;
The herd beside the shaded fountain pants;
For life is driven from all the landscape brown;
The bird hath sought his tree, the snake his den,
The trout floats dead in the hot stream, and men
Drop by the sunstroke in the populous town:
As if the Day of Fire had dawned, and sent
Its deadly breath into the firmament.
***
Plum-wine making complete
A cat arrives
— Murayama Furusato
***
Aging plum wine
Made for someone
— Nihei Yoko
***
In her pajamas
Mom shakes the plum wine bottle
— Sonoko Tamura
***
Heaven, by Rupert Brooke (excerpt)
Fish (fly-replete, in depth of June,
Dawdling away their wat’ry noon)
Ponder deep wisdom, dark or clear,
Each secret fishy hope or fear.
Fish say, they have their Stream and Pond;
But is there anything Beyond?
***
In a water basin
they nod to each other -
gourds and eggplants
— Yosa Buson
***
kneading eggplants…
purple on salt remains
like light after the sunset
— Yabuki Nobuhiko
***
The parent bee
its honey being stolen
buzzes near
— Issa
***
The Song of the Bee, by Marian Douglas
Buzz! buzz! buzz!
This is the song of the bee.
His legs are of yellow;
A jolly, good fellow,
And yet a great worker is he.
In days that are sunny
He's getting his honey;
In days that are cloudy
He's making his wax:
On pinks and on lilies,
And gay daffodillies,
And columbine blossoms,
He levies a tax!
Buzz! buzz! buzz!
The sweet-smelling clover,
He, humming, hangs over;
The scent of the roses
Makes fragrant his wings:
He never gets lazy;
From thistle and daisy,
And weeds of the meadow,
Some treasure he brings.
Buzz! buzz! buzz!
From morning's first light
Till the coming of night,
He's singing and toiling
The summer day through.
Oh! we may get weary,
And think work is dreary;
'Tis harder by far
To have nothing to do.
***
Chopsticks float
In the water
the end of the somen nagashi slide
— Hakko Yokoyama
***
Into the flow of the somen Nagashi
Chopsticks
Some skillful, others clumsy
— Yamada Yoshiyuki
***
Nagashi somen
I am eating
What coolness tastes like
— Junzo Yoshida
***
Moonlight, Summer Moonlight by Emily Jane Brontë
’Tis moonlight, summer moonlight,
All soft and still and fair;
The solemn hour of midnight
Breathes sweet thoughts everywhere,
But most where trees are sending
Their breezy boughs on high,
Or stooping low are lending
A shelter from the sky.
And there in those wild bowers
A lovely form is laid;
Green grass and dew-steeped flowers
Wave gently round her head.
***
Seasonal Recipes:
By kigo:
Blueberries: Blueberry Tiramisu “Bluemisu”
Gooseberries: Gooseberry, Meadowsweet, and Wild Strawberry Jelly
Plums: Plum Barbecue Sauce
Apricots: Apricot Compote
Eggplant: Grilled Eggplant - or - Eggplant Shigiyaki
Cucumber: Cucumber and Tomato Salad
“Gone Fishin’”: Basil Rosemary Grilled Trout
Music Featured in this Episode
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Overture via MusOpen
Midsummer Meadow Party by Lobo Loco
The Butterfly, Kids on the Mountain by Slante
Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K. 581 performed by Musicians from Malboro
Americana Jam by The Underscore Orkestra
Summer, Movt. 1, Allefro non molto by Antonio Vivaldi performed by John Harrison
Honeysuckle Rose by Fats Waller performed by Chris Whittaker
Les Temps Des Cerises performed by Chris Whittaker
Flight of the Bumble Bee via Wikimedia Commons
Calm by Zylo-Ziko
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Nocturne via MusOpen
Visual Examples of Seasonal Words
The Beginning of Spring
February 4 - 20. In this hopeful episode, "The Beginning of Spring," Alexis and Kit notice signs of winter's end among the scents of the trees, the songs of birds, and a special, perhaps romantic, feeling in the air. Hiro's Corner takes a look at a boggy perennial.
February 4 - 20
In this hopeful episode, "The Beginning of Spring," Alexis and Kit notice signs of winter's end among the scents of the trees, the songs of birds, and a special, perhaps romantic, feeling in the air. Hiro's Corner takes a look at a boggy perennial.
Poems featured in this episode:
Hope by E. (Edith) Nesbit
O thrush, is it true?
Your song tells
Of a world born anew,
Of fields gold with buttercups, woodlands all blue
With hyacinth bells;
Of primroses deep
In the moss of the lane,
Of a Princess asleep
And dear magic to do.
Will the sun wake the princess? O thrush, is it true?
Will Spring come again?
Will Spring come again?
Now at last
With soft shine and rain
Will the violet be sweet where the dead leaves have lain?
Will Winter be past?
In the brown of the copse
Will white wind-flowers star through
Where the last oak-leaf drops?
Will the daisies come too,
And the may and the lilac? Will Spring come again?
O thrush, is it true?
***
More than shadow
Is the wind
Returning cold
— Teiko Inahata
***
The return of cold
Then the return of cold again
Springtime
— Nishiyama Hakun
***
Two hoes hang on the wall
Shallow Spring
— Murakami Kijo
***
Shallow Spring is coming
And already I'm in the garden
— Sekitei Hara
***
He Knows No Winter by Sudie Stuart Hager
He knows no winter, he who loves the soil,
For, stormy days, when he is free from toil,
He plans his summer crops, selects his seeds
From bright-paged catalogues for garden needs.
When looking out upon frost-silvered fields,
He visualizes autumn's golden yields;
He sees in snow and sleet and icy rain
Precious moisture for his early grain;
He hears spring-heralds in the storm's turmoil
He knows no winter, he who loves the soil.
***
As evening deepens
The scent of burning fields
Rises in the air
— Inahata Teiko
***
The morning’s blue sky of Aso
Eagerly await
The burning fields
- Matuso Basho
***
February by Jane [Goodwin] Austin
I thought the world was cold in death;
The flowers, the birds, all life was gone,
For January's bitter breath
Had slain the bloom and hushed the song.
And still the earth is cold and white,
And mead and forest yet are bare;
But there's a something in the light
That says the germ of life is there.
***
Evening In A Sugar Orchard by Robert Frost
From where I lingered in a lull in march
outside the sugar-house one night for choice,
I called the fireman with a careful voice
And bade him leave the pan and stoke the arch:
'O fireman, give the fire another stoke,
And send more sparks up chimney with the smoke.'
I thought a few might tangle, as they did,
Among bare maple boughs, and in the rare
Hill atmosphere not cease to glow,
And so be added to the moon up there.
The moon, though slight, was moon enough to show
On every tree a bucket with a lid,
And on black ground a bear-skin rug of snow.
The sparks made no attempt to be the moon.
They were content to figure in the trees
As Leo, Orion, and the Pleiades.
And that was what the boughs were full of soon.
***
If not for the call
of the bush warbler coming
out of the valley,
who then would be aware of
the arrival of springtime?
— Ôe no Chisato, from the Kokinshū
***
Singing practice
every morning
with the warbler
— Issa
***
Even the warbler’s voice
gets hoarse -
snow still on Fuji
— Chiyo-jo
***
The warbler
has been perching on that plum-tree
for all eternity
— Onitsura
***
A warbler sings so sweet…
and by the eaves…
plum blossoms
— Buson
***
When the east wind blows,
Send me your perfume,
Blossoms of
the plum:
Though your lord be absent,
Forget not the spring.
— Sugawara Michizane
***
As on the plum comes
blossom after blossom, so
comes the warmth of spring.
— Ransetsu
***
All the snow melts --
everywhere the fragrance
of wild plum blossoms
— Tagami Kikusha
***
When everything has faded they alone shine forth,
encroaching on the charms of smaller gardens.
Their scattered shadows fall lightly on clear water,
their subtle scent pervades the moonlit dusk.
— Lin Bu
***
Lover cat
as a cat in love
has its own way
— Nagata Koui
***
While hitting
the heads of dandelions
cats in love
— Issa
***
Love drunk
Chasing after a chicken
A male cat
— Issa
***
Plum blossom scent
sends him off carousing...
lazy cat
— Issa
***
Cats in love
when they stop in my bedroom
a hazy moon
— Basho
***
Hearts Were Made to Give Away by Annette Wynne
Hearts were made to give away
On Valentine's good day;
Wrap them up in dainty white,
Send them off the thirteenth night.
Any kind of heart that's handy—
Hearts of lace, and hearts of candy,
Hearts all trimmed with ribbands fine
Send for good St. Valentine.
Hearts were made to give away
On Valentine's dear day.
***
1886 ST. VALENTINE'S DAY By Christina Rossetti
Winter's latest snowflake is the snowdrop flower,
Yellow crocus kindles the first flame of the Spring,
At that time appointed, at that day and hour
When life reawakens and hope in everything.
Such a tender snowflake in the wintry weather,
Such a feeble flamelet for chilled St. Valentine,--
But blest be any weather which finds us still together,
My pleasure and my treasure O blessed Mother mine.
***
Pancakes by Christina Rossetti
Mix a pancake,
Stir a pancake,
Pop it in the pan;
Fry the pancake,
Toss the pancake—
Catch it if you can.
***
Another year is gone with the sound of the firecrackers.
Spring is coming, we can feel the warm wind. It is time to drink the tu su wine.
On this bright new year’s day, thousands of families are busy.
Every family is busy with changing the old scrolls and putting up the new ones.
— Wang Anshi, Song Dynasty
A Seasonal Recipe: Chocolate Pancakes
Via Pretty. Simple. Sweet. Visit their website for more information and tips and tricks!
Ingredients
Pancakes
1 1/3 cups (185g) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (25g) cocoa powder (I use Dutch-processed)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/3 cup (65g) granulated sugar
1 cup (240 ml) whole milk
3 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil (or 45g melted butter)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup (85g) chocolate chips or chunks
butter or oil , for cooking
Chocolate Ganache Sauce
140 g (5 oz.) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy cream
Instructions
In a large bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt (or whisk well with a whisk). Set aside.
In a separate medium bowl, whisk together egg and sugar until well combined. Add milk, oil (or melted butter), and vanilla extract. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir just until combined and moistened. Do not over mix. Mix in chocolate chips or chunks. Set batter aside and make the chocolate sauce.
Chocolate sauce: In a medium heatproof bowl, combine chocolate and heavy cream. Microwave in 20- to 30-second increments, mixing in between, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Set aside while making the pancakes. I like to pour it over the pancakes while it’s warm.
Cook the pancakes: Heat a griddle or skillet over medium heat. Coat with butter or oil. For each pancake, drop 1/4 cup of batter onto skillet. Cook 1-2 minutes, until surface of pancakes have some bubbles and the bottom appears to be done. Flip carefully and cook another 1-2 minutes. Transfer to a plate and if you want you can cover the plate loosely with aluminum foil to keep warm. Coat the skillet with butter or oil before every pancake or batch of pancakes to prevent sticking.
Serve immediately with chocolate sauce (rewarm sauce in the microwave for a few seconds if needed).
Visual Examples of Seasonal Words
Early Cold
January 5 - 20. In the first Season by Season episode of the New Year, Alexis and Kit prepare for the upcoming year while discussing the season of keeping resolutions, visits from snow crows, windy winter weather, and early growing plants that herald the coming spring. Hiro's Corner takes a closer look at the Japanese calendar and the naming of the month of January.
January 5 - 20
In the first Season by Season episode of the New Year, Alexis and Kit prepare for the upcoming year while discussing the season of keeping resolutions, visits from snow crows, windy winter weather, and early growing plants that herald the coming spring. Hiro's Corner takes a closer look at the Japanese calendar and the naming of the month of January.
Poems featured in this episode:
January, by Winifred C. Marshall
Little January
Tapped at my door today.
And said, "Put on your winter wraps,
And come outdoors to play."
Little January
Is always full of fun;
Until the set of sun.
Little January
Will stay a month with me
And we will have such jolly times -
Just come along and see.
***
The old calendar
Fills me with gratitude
Like a sutra
- Yosa Buson
***
First calendar sheet -
When I turn it I almost feel
The globe has moved
- Yaki Tsutomu
***
New Year’s Resolutions (excerpt), by Rudyard Kipling
I am resolved throughout the year
To lay my vices on the shelf;
A godly, sober course to steer
And love my neighbors as myself—
Excepting always two or three
Whom I detest as they hate me.
I am resolved—that vows like these,
Though lightly made, are hard to keep;
Wherefore I’ll take them by degrees,
Lest my back-slidings make me weep.
***
I went to the mountain
And found the fires burning
After the Coming of Age festival
— Koji Yoshida
***
On Coming of Age Day
The snow storm, too
Celebrates
— Kaga Hosokawa
***
Static electricity from my sweater
Coming of Age Day
Is here
— Keiichi Makino
***
Plough the land, plough the land;
Hold the handles with each hand;
Furrows keep straight and deep,
Firm and steady stand.
Quickly turn around we may,
Ploughing back the other way;
Plough the land, plough the land—
Farmers understand.
***
Snow by Adelaide Crapsey
Look up…
From bleakening hills
Blows down the light, first breath
Of wintry wind…look up, and scent
The snow!
***
Ode to the East Wind by C. Kingsley
“Welcome, wild nor-easter
Shame it is to see
Odes to every zephyr
Ne’er a verse to thee.
Welcome, black Nor-easer
Over the German foam
Over the Danish moorland
From thy frozen home
Sweep the golden reed-beds
Crisp the lazy dyke
Hunger into madness
Every plunging pike.
Through the black fir-forest
Thunder harsh and dry,
Shattering down the snow-flakes
Off the curdled sky
***
Gently Falling by Emma Louise Clapp
Softly from the sky is falling
Snowflakes white as lilies fair;
Gently to each other calling
As they float down through the air.
Softly, softly, oh so softly!
Do they come from dizzy heights;
Gently, gently, oh, so gently!
Do they lay a blanket white.
Over all the many housetops,
Over shrubs and tall, tall trees,
Over hills and field and meadows,
Hiding stones and restless leaves.
***
When Days Are Crisp and Bright by Annette Wynne
When days are crisp and bright
And flakes are downward hurled,
O, to wake up in the light
And find a white, white world!
O, to look out all around
On fence, and bush, and hill,
And see the snow piled on the ground
And on the window sill!
It's hard to sit in school all day
And work and study hard,
'Twould be such fun to go and play
At soldiers in the yard.
And build a fort just like the one
The picture has with flag unfurled;
The summer's good, but O, the fun
To have a white, white world!
***
“A Year’s Windfalls” by Christina Rosetti (excerpt)
On the wind of January
Down flits the snow,
Travelling from the frozen North
As cold as it can blow.
Poor robin redbreast,
Look where he comes;
Let him in to feel your fire,
And toss him of your crumbs.
***
A crow
Which I'd usually hate
So beautiful in morning snow.
— Basho
***
Pounding the seven herbs
Doesn't drown him out...
Crow
— Issa
***
Shepherd’s Purse by Cecily Mary Barker
Though I’m poor to human eyes
Really I am rich and wise.
Every tiny flower I shed
Leaves a heart-shaped purse instead.
In each purse is wealth indeed—
Every coin a living seed.
Sow the seed upon the earth—
Living plants shall spring to birth.
Silly people’s purses hold
Lifeless silver, clinking gold;
But you cannot grow a pound
From a farthing in the ground.
Money may become a curse:
Give me then my Shepherd’s Purse.
***
To a Snowdrop, by William Wordsworth
Lone Flower, hemmed in with snows and white as they
But hardier far, once more I see thee bend
Thy forehead, as if fearful to offend,
Like an unbidden guest. Though day by day,
Storms, sallying from the mountain-tops, waylay
The rising sun, and on the plains descend;
Yet art thou welcome, welcome as a friend
Whose zeal outruns his promise! Blue-eyed May
Shall soon behold this border thickly set
With bright jonquils, their odours lavishing
On the soft west-wind and his frolic peers;
Nor will I then thy modest grace forget,
Chaste Snowdrop, venturous harbinger of Spring,
And pensive monitor of fleeting years!
Music Featured in this Podcast
Béla Bartók - Romanian Folk Dances
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Marriage of Figaro Overture
Johann Sebastian Bach - Pythagorean Tuning, Prelude 1
Lobo Loco - Dear Happy New Year
Claude Debussy - Toccata for Piano
Gabriel Faure - Fantasie
Franz Schubert - Octet No. 2
Unheard Music Concepts - Dakota
Robert Schumann - A Tale of Distant Lands
Johann Strauss II - Tales from the Vienna Woods
Visual Examples of Seasonal Words
Heavy Snow
December 6 - 20. This episode of Season by Season finds Kit and Alexis preparing for the darkening days of winter. Together they discuss cold weather and snow, are cheered by winter birdsong, and find light and warmth in friendship during this merry season. Hiro's Corner explores the snowy landscapes that shape our artistic ideas of wintertime.
December 6 - 20
This episode of Season by Season finds Kit and Alexis preparing for the darkening days of winter. Together they discuss cold weather and snow, are cheered by winter birdsong, and find light and warmth in friendship during this merry season. Hiro's Corner explores the snowy landscapes that shape our artistic ideas of wintertime.
Poems featured in this episode:
A December Day, by Sara Teasdale
Dawn turned on her purple pillow— And late, late came the winter day,
Snow was curved to the boughs of the willow.
— The sunless world was white and grey.
At noon we heard a blue-jay scolding,
— At five the last thin light was lost
From snow-banked windows faintly holding
— The feathery filigree of frost.
***
It Snows, by Hannah Flagg Gould
It snows! it snows! from out the sky
The feathered flakes, how fast they fly,
Like little birds, that don't know why
They're on the chase, from place to place,
While neither can the other trace.
It snows! it snows! a merry play
Is o'er us, on this heavy day!
To-morrow will the storm be done;
Then, out will come the golden sun:
And we shall see, upon the run
Before his beams, in sparkling streams,
What now a curtain o'er him seems.
And thus, with life, it ever goes;
'T is shade and shine!—It snows! it snows!
***
I Heard a Bird Sing, by Oliver Herford
I heard a bird sing
In the dark of December
A magical thing
And sweet to remember.
'We are nearer to Spring
Than we were in September,'
I heard a bird sing
In the dark of December."
***
The Cardinal, by Alice E. Ball
When autumn woods are bare and dead,
A crested bird, of cardinal red,
Sways like an oak-leaf overhead;
And sighs, "Drear! drear! Drear!"
When winter woods are white with snow,
And drifts pile high as wild winds blow,
Like flame this torchlike bird doth glow;
And cries, "Whew! whew! whew!"
***
Do all the birds
To the southlands go?
No!
No!
Oh, no!
Chickadee,
Sparrow,
Bunting,
Crow
Care not a whit
When the wild winds blow.
They care not a whit,
They’re sad not a bit,
They think naught of it,
When the wild winds blow.
(Anon.)
***
Winterberry branch
Calls winter birds for breakfast
I will feed you now
— Amy Ludwig VanDerwater
***
the wren wishes to be in the snow not the blossoms
— Chiyo-jo
***
Dust of Snow, by Robert Frost
The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree
Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.
***
Excerpt from Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott:
...Mrs. March got her wet things off, her warm slippers on, and sitting down in the easy chair, drew Amy to her lap, preparing to enjoy the happiest hour of her busy day. The girls flew about, trying to make things comfortable, each in her own way. Meg arranged the tea table, Jo brought wood and set chairs, dropping, over–turning, and clattering everything she touched. Beth trotted to and fro between parlor and kitchen, quiet and busy, while Amy gave directions to everyone, as she sat with her hands folded.
***
There’s rosemary and rue. These keep
Seeming and savor all the winter long.
Grace and remembrance be to you.
- William Shakespeare (Winter’s Tale, Act 4, Scene 4)
***
There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance; pray you, love,
remember. And there is pansies, that’s for thoughts.
-William Shakespeare (Hamlet, Act 4, Scene 5)
***
The Christmas Holly by Eliza Cook
The holly! the holly! oh, twine it with bay—
Come give the holly a song;
For it helps to drive stern winter away,
With his garment so sombre and long.
It peeps through the trees with its berries of red,
And its leaves of burnish’d green,
When the flowers and fruits have long been dead,
And not even the daisy is seen,
Then sing to the holly, the Christmas holly,
That hangs over peasant and king:
While we laugh and carouse ’neath its glitt’ring boughs,
To the Christmas holly we’ll sing.
***
People, Look East, by Eleanor Farjeon
People, look east. The time is near
Of the crowning of the year.
Make your house fair as you are able,
Trim the hearth and set the table.
People, look east and sing today:
Love, the guest, is on the way.
***
From "The Shortest Day," by Susan Cooper
“So the shortest day came, and the year died,
And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world
Came people singing, dancing,
To drive the dark away.”
***
Night walks with a heavy step
Round yard and hearth,
As the sun departs from earth,
Shadows are brooding.
There in our dark house,
Walking with lit candles,
Santa Lucia, Santa Lucia!
Night walks grand, yet silent,
Now hear its gentle wings,
In every room so hushed,
Whispering like wings.
Look, at our threshold stands,
White-clad with light in her hair,
Santa Lucia, Santa Lucia!
Darkness shall take flight soon,
From earth's valleys.
So she speaks
Wonderful words to us:
A new day will rise again
From the rosy sky…
Santa Lucia, Santa Lucia!
***
The Feast of Lights, by Emma Lazarus
Kindle the taper like the steadfast star
Ablaze on evening's forehead o'er the earth,
And add each night a lustre till afar
An eightfold splendor shine above thy hearth.
Clash, Israel, the cymbals, touch the lyre,
Blow the brass trumpet and the harsh-tongued horn;
Chant psalms of victory till the heart takes fire,
The Maccabean spirit leap new-born.
***
In the Window
In the window where you can see the glow of
my menorah on newly fallen snow,
I will set you one little candle on this, the first night of Hanukkah.
St. Lucia Day Buns
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup butter
1/4 lukewarm water
1 package dry yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon saffron
2 3/4 cups flour
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
24 raisins (currants)
1. Warm the milk in the small saucepan over low heat. Cut the butter into small pieces. Add the butter pieces to the warm milk and stir, then turn off the heat.
2. Measure the lukewarm water into the large mixing bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the water. Stir well. Set the bowl aside for 5 minutes.
3. Add the warm milk and melted butter to the saffron. Stir in the sugar, egg, salt and saffron. Then add 1 1/2 cups flour and stir until smooth.
4. Add enough of the remaining flour so that you can shape the dough into a ball. Save some of the remaining flour for kneading the dough.
5. Put the dough on the floured cutting board. Dust your hands with flour and knead the dough. Add flour when the dough gets sticky.
6. After 5 to 10 minutes of kneading, you will have a smooth ball of dough. It should spring back when you poke it with your finger. Cover the dough with the towel and let it rest while you wash and dry the mixing bowl.
7. Spread cooking oil in the large bowl. Roll the dough in the oil until it is coated. Cover the bowl with the towel and set in a warm place to rise. After 45 minutes, the dough should be twice as large. If not, check it again in 15 minutes.
8. Punch down the dough. Then divide it into 6 sections. Take one section and divide it in half. Roll each half into an 8 inch rope. Cross the two ropes in the middle. Then coil the ends in tight circles. Shape 5 more buns in the same way.
9. Place the buns 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Cover with the towel. Let the buns rise for 30 to 45 minutes until they double in size. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees while they are rising.
10. Mix the egg and water with the fork in the small bowl. Brush this mixture lightly over the top of each bun. Decorate the buns with raisins.
11. Bake the buns for 15 to 20 minutes. When the buns are golden brown, move them to the wire rack to cool.
Serve with coffee and enjoy!
Music Featured in this Podcast
Snow Day by Pictures of a Floating World
Mo-Oz-Tzur by Glenn Tompkins (with permission)
O Frondens by Hildegard of Bingen Peace Christmas by Lobo Loco
Deck the Halls by USAFB Concert Band
Sonata No. 8 by Ludwig Van Beethoven performed by Daniel Veesey
Wind Quintet Op. 78 by August Klughart
Violincello and Orchestra in B Minor by Antonin Dvorak
Flute Concerto in G Major by Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach
Scherzo by Goens performed by John Michel
Visual Examples of Seasonal Words
The Beginning of Winter
November 7 - 21. In this brisk episode of Season by Season, Alexis and Kit savor the last moments of autumn. Join them as they kick through the fallen leaves under persimmon trees, prepare their appetites for heartier fare, and learn about the festival of lights Diwali. Hiro's Corner features an interlude with a uniquely autumnal kind of rain.
November 7 - 21
In this brisk episode of Season by Season, Alexis and Kit savor the last moments of autumn. Join them as they kick through the fallen leaves under persimmon trees, prepare their appetites for heartier fare, and learn about the festival of lights Diwali. Hiro's Corner features an interlude with a uniquely autumnal kind of rain.
Poems featured in this episode:
"November" by Elizabeth Stoddard
Much have I spoken of the faded leaf;
Long have I listened to the wailing wind,
And watched it ploughing through the heavy clouds,
For autumn charms my melancholy mind.
When autumn comes, the poets sing a dirge:
The year must perish; all the flowers are dead;
The sheaves are gathered; and the mottled quail
Runs in the stubble, but the lark has fled!
Still, autumn ushers in the Christmas cheer,
The holly-berries and the ivy-tree:
They weave a chaplet for the Old Year’s bier,
These waiting mourners do not sing for me!
I find sweet peace in depths of autumn woods,
Where grow the ragged ferns and roughened moss;
The naked, silent trees have taught me this,—
The loss of beauty is not always loss!
***
a shooting star...
unable to use up the length of
the vast sky
— Shugyo Takaha
***
Slurping ramen
In Kitakata
The north wind blows - hyuuuu!
—Takasawa Yoichi
***
After a climb
To the mountain top
A ramen shop
—Takasawa Yoichi
***
A jumbo serving of clams
For my ramen
The cold rain pelts
—Akabane Toshiko
***
A cold, gray day, a lowering sky,
A lonesome pigeon wheeling by;
The soft, blue smoke that hangs and fades,
The shivering crane that flaps and wades;
Dead leaves that, whispering, quit their tree,
The peace the river sings to me;
The chill aloofness of the Fall—
I love it all!
—Unknown
***
today too, today too
autumn rain...
mountainside house
—Issa
***
Cold Winter shower!
See all the people running
Across the Seta Bridge
-Josa
***
The scarlet leaves
Serve as armor for the mountain
Against the rain
—Chobane
***
November Night by Adelaide Crapsey
Listen ...
With faint, dry sound,
Like steps of passing ghosts,
The leaves, frost-crisp'd, break free from the trees
And fall.
***
fallen leaves--
not a single crow
is irksome
— Issa
***
the wind has brought
enough to build a fire...
fallen leaves
— Issa
***
The gods are absent
everything is desolate
among the fallen leaves
— Basho
***
In the Godless Month
I wake at night and listen
to what gives voice
to a storm on this hillside . . .
the sound of falling leaves
- Monk Noin (988-1050)
***
The Consent by Howard Nemerov
Late in November, on a single night
Not even near to freezing, the ginkgo trees
That stand along the walk drop all their leaves
In one consent, and neither to rain nor to wind
But as though to time alone: the golden and green
Leaves litter the lawn today, that yesterday
Had spread aloft their fluttering fans of light.
What signal from the stars? What senses took it in?
What in those wooden motives so decided
To strike their leaves, to down their leaves,
Rebellion or surrender? and if this
Can happen thus, what race shall be exempt?
What use to learn the lessons taught by time,
If a star at any time may tell us: Now.
***
three shadows
from persimmons on a stick
on the paper door
— Hayu
***
one persimmon
droops listlessly...
winter rain
— Issa
***
on the high branch
one astringent persimmon...
like old times
— Issa
***
Write me down
As the one who loved
Persimmons
— Shiki
***
Migrating down through northern seas
Says the report
Time to buy sanma
— Toyama no Kanto
***
A gift from the north
Grilled sanma
— Chris Mathlos
***
snow crabs ...
together to Fukui
on a winter trip
— Rikei
***
Light by Rabindranath Tagore
Light, my light, the world-filling light,
the eye-kissing light,
heart-sweetening light!
Ah, the light dances, my darling, at the center of my life;
the light strikes, my darling, the chords of my love;
the sky opens, the wind runs wild, laughter passes over the earth.
The butterflies spread their sails on the sea of light.
Lilies and jasmines surge up on the crest of the waves of light.
The light is shattered into gold on every cloud, my darling,
and it scatters gems in profusion.
Mirth spreads from leaf to leaf, my darling,
and gladness without measure.
The heaven's river has drowned its banks
and the flood of joy is abroad.
Music Heard on this Episode
Organ Concerto Op. 7 No. 1 by Handel
Quintet for Piano and Winds No. 1. Largo Allegro Moderato by Mozart
Pour les agrements by Debussy"
Gymnopedie No. 1 by Erik Satie, Arrangement for alto saxophone and piano by Hernando Vitores
Piano quartet in G minor 2. Allegro ma non troppo by Brahms
Berceuse by Chopin
Quintet for piano and winds No. 1 largo allegro moderato by Mozart
Wind Quintet No. 1 Allegro ben moderato by Carl Nielsen
Diabeli Variations by Beethoven