The perfect spot for downtown fish and chips, view from On the Inlet, Port Douglas, Far North Queensland, Australia
Port Douglas
Could have, should have, would have
I have held onto Édith Piaf’s “No Regrets” as a kind of mantra since my late teens, even so, turning 50 last Thursday led me to reflect on the past, present and future. Would things have been different if I had done this or that?
The above picture taken from the back of the sunset cruise sailboat as we returned to Port Douglas marina last Saturday reinforced to me that the past is just that, the future hasn’t happened yet and the present is all we truly have.
“Non, je ne regrette rien” (meaning “No, I regret nothing”) is a French song composed by Charles Dumont, with lyrics by Michel Vaucaire. It was written in 1956, and is best known through Piaf’s 1960 recording, which spent seven weeks atop the French Singles & Airplay Reviews chart
No! No regrets
No! I will have no regrets
All the things
That went wrong
For at last I have learned to be strongNo! No regrets
No! I will have no regrets
For the grief doesn’t last
It is gone
I’ve forgotten the pastAnd the memories I had
I no longer desire
Both the good and the bad
I have flung in a fire
And I feel in my heart
That the seed has been sown
It is something quite new
It’s like nothing I’ve knownNo! No regrets
No! I will have no regrets
All the things that went wrong
For at last I have learned to be strongNo! No regrets
No! I will have no regrets
For the seed that is new
It’s the love that is growing for you
References
Non, je ne regrette rien – Wikipedia
No regrets lyrics – Azlyrics
Happy accident
Hibiscus flowers fascinate me, the tree in the background was a happy accident.
Vibrant colours
The colours in this picture capture the vibrancy of tropical Port Douglas for me.
Birthday showers
It is apt that it rains on my birthday as I was born in the year of the water rabbit. We have had five days of perfect Spring time weather in tropical far North Queensland, Australia. Lunch by the pool today may become lunch in or playing pool.
The showers are an inconvenience more than a burden. The 50th celebrations not going according to plan are a reminder that there are greater forces at work. Rather than dampening my spirits the water helps me to reflect on life and the misplaced importance I allot to creating the perfect occasion. It is more than enough that I am joined on my birthday by my partner, our dog and a group of dear friends.
Let the sunshine in
For the third month in a row music has provided inspiration for my response to the Bloggers for Peace challenge:
When the moon is in the Seventh House
And Jupiter aligns with Mars
Then peace will guide the planets
And love will steer the stars
This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius
Age of Aquarius
Aquarius!
Aquarius!Harmony and understanding
Sympathy and trust abounding
No more falsehoods or derisions
Golden living dreams of visions
Mystic crystal revelation
And the mind’s true liberation
Excerpt from Age Of Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In, a medley of two songs written for the musical Hair, released as a single by 5th Dimension in 1969. The picture was taken in Port Douglas, Queensland, Australia.
Information sources:
Song Meanings
Wikipedia
Flamingos in the mist
After a break of only one week I have found it incredibly difficult to get back into the swing of life in Sydney. The memory of our vacation in the uncomplicated, tropical Winter climate of Port Douglas stands in stark contrast to the daily routine of (relative) cold, traffic and gym based exercise life to which I have returned.
Making sense of the polarised forces at work have highlighted what a cluttered life I lead, holding on to too much emotionally and physically. It is no wonder that I feel sluggish as I haul the baggage of my past around with me. I stand facing a barricade of feelings and possessions that I need to clear from my path.
Cleanliness next to nature
Shower and bathe outside to the sound of birdsong while palm filtered sunlight illuminates your skin.
Pink Flamingo Falls
Warm water falls to keep the pool at a comfortable 29oC
Winter beauties
Like a person possessed I have accumulated quite a number of pictures of flowers while in Port Douglas, Australia. The one on the left is a member of the ginger family, I have no idea what the other two are, any suggestions would be gratefully received.
theINFP 