A poem for a summer afternoon

If I can stop one Heart from breaking
I shall not live in vain
If I can ease one Life the Aching
Or cool one Pain
Or help one fainting Robin
Unto his Nest again
I shall not live in Vain.


Emily Dickinson (c. 1864)

It's always interesting to me to note which words are capitalized in an Emily Dickinson poem. Are these the words that are meant to have more weight and meaning?

Let's talk about the weather ... for a change

We've always been told not to talk about the weather in new situations, at parties, etc.; as soon as you mention the subject your new acquaintance needs to go and refresh their drink. These days I'd welcome a conversation about the weather. Aren't you tired of hearing the self-appointed experts go on and on about global warming, climate change, catastrophic climate disruption?

Summer Afternoons

"Summer afternoon, summer afternoon, to me these have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language."   Henry James

Red Admiral butterfly on rudbeckia.  Photo by Ellen Halloran