As It (Perhaps) Was...

The rays of happiness, like those of light, are colorless when unbroken.

Henry W. Longfellow

That twinkle in your eye,

Was it always there in the first place?

Perhaps I failed to grasp and take hold of it.

(Credit to Alison at http://weheartit.com/entry/1963165)

I have lost ground in many ways,

but not enough that I could not catch you, as you plummeted from your fall.

In some ways, our lives spin around and float above ground as much as the lives of others.

Others whom as we may not know it, touches us so immaculately that it feeds the silent churning of desire deep within ourselves.

Some days, I can see and feel your radiance through the faces of those I pass by, or those I know.

Their laugh becomes yours, and when their eyes smile, one can see why its been said that they are the windows to a person's soul.

I walk beneath the shadows of the leaves between the trees, light etches through to create its own individual forms of art on the ground. In my hands, I hold the porcelain vase that I carry with me (I carry it with me always).

Each scene that appears in front of me, runs through like a slow-run film, timeless yet with a limit.

Memory sustains it for me, and all my imaginings, my little secret garden, becomes bigger than what my body could contain.

I feel at times that my surge of inspiration, my dreams and hopes are much too big for my physical body to pursue. I wanted to fly, but fly I couldn't in reality.

But through my mind, I flew over a thousand times- pass every field, every pond, every forest, and every ocean.

This world and life itself, is much more than I ever thought it could be.

When I pass by the seashore on a cliff-top, my hands barely touch the blades of grass as I bend forth to see the endless calm of blue.

I could sit here for hours on end, watching the sun drift across the sky, leaving me a soft, slow wink before it retires to the other side of the world.

There is nothing better than to curl up against a good book in your hands, with a bit of music, and the windows wide open on a summer's day, letting in the smell of a well-kept promise of better things to come.

Maybe one day, I'll come to realize that often what I think of moments that usher in an essence of finality, can unravel another story in itself that is something more brilliant and blinding than ever before.

Maybe I am going through this otherworldly sphere right now.

I feel that I am in my rightful place... being whole does not merely consist of having all the material goods, but rather how one feels during a moment in time.

As I climb out of my treehouse, I slowly put away my paper crown, and my velvet wand, and lie under the stars, counting the ones I feel that my wishes would be heard the most. And I wish for you everyday.

Note: Pictures were taken via Weheartit

My Love For Ballet

"The purpose of art is higher than art. What we are really interested in are masterpieces of humanity." -Alonzo King-

Bonjour all!

I am very gracious that examinations have finished so now the summer break awaits! Endless opportunities awaits.

This post is dedicated to my love of ballet. Ever since I was a little girl, I have been fascinated and awe-struck by this world.

From the pink tutu, the ballet shoes, to their form and the ability to successfully conjure up a rush of emotions through the art of dance, it has captured me all the more.

In my lifetime, I've brushed with ballet when I was younger, even taking a dance class during high school where there would be a period of sessions doing ballet- they were the ones I looked very much forward to, and with great enthusiasm.

To hold such fine discipline and to feel with the music, especially with Debussy's "Clair de Lune", Gustav Mahler's "Symphony No. 5", Tchaikovsky or Léo Delibes, while attempting to do aspects as a good turn-out or a pirouette- I never complained once.

Whenever I hear each of those pieces on my playlist in my ipod, I think back to those days and other ballerina inspirations.

It was through this life experience that ballet has a soft spot in my heart.

Ballet has this sort of ethereal grace and timeless elegance, which forever remains a source of endless daydream.

Some of my favorite ballets would be Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, Opus 19/The Dreamer, and The Nutcracker for the holiday season.

I have some personal favorite ballerinas whom I adore, although I love them all- all are very talented and remarkable in their own right :

Margot Fonteyn- She is regarded as one of the greatest classical ballet dancer of all time.

Yao Wei

Olga Spessivtzeva - A beautiful romantic dancer, with a very moving life story as well as being a remarkable Giselle.

From the National Ballet of Canada- our very own Heather Ogden (Principal Dancer)

Guillaume Cote (Principal Dancer) -Both Guillaume and Heather are a real life couple, which I find endearing - love and ballet...one complements the other.

Stephanie Hutchinson (First Soloist)

I love how they are able to travel all around the world and perform in such majestic, historic, and beautiful places as La Scala and the Opera Garnier, where someday I hope to walk through those very doors.

There are also other films and books that I love which reflects the essence of ballet.

Daisy in the film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

I enjoyed this film very much, especially as the short story itself by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a favorite of mine. I found the ballet scenes to have a lingering impression on me afterwards, even the music Alexandre Desplat composed for those scenes brought a sort of magical quality to it. On an added note, I loved Cate Blanchett as Daisy- the film itself in general was beautiful.

The Bloomsbury Ballerina- a great read on Lydia Lopokova, who was the wife to the famous economist John Maynard Keynes. I love how they make such a great pair- the ballerina and the economist.

Another great read based on this Prima Ballerina Assoluta's life. There was also a recent BBC movie on her life, played by Anne-Marie Duff, which is recommended if anyone wish to know more about her.

And that's all for now, ciao!

Note: Images from the National Ballet of Canada are via their website: www.national.ballet.ca some other images were via Tumblr

A Clockwork Magic

Your imagination is your preview of life's coming attractions.

Albert Einstein

Bonjour all!

Oftentimes I find myself baffled at the unbelievable things the human mind can achieve.

What powers of imagination that we bestow, the inventions that come alive, and the endless opportunities to dream in hope and live in a world where the strange and exquisite creativity comes alive!

However, I feel sorry at times at the world that we live in- often it can be quite harsh, mind-numbing and tedious, where such grand ideas, imagery, and inventions get pushed out and excluded because it is seen by some as different, and that people can't accept such things or don't want to understand.

I know I'm not alone in this when I say that individuals such as I, are able to see the other side in things, see beauty in a long-forgotten building, find beauty in those that others strike as ugly, see life through the Romantic lens , champion divine aspirations, and can simply believe that we can truly make our own happy endings.

I haven't done this in quite some time, but I would like to share with you a bit of my world that is a sort of Wonderland for me- whether it be actual persons, books, artworks, events, and others. I hope you enjoy reading!

Events

L'Exposition Universelle de 1889 in Paris: How I would have loved to have been there! Especially watching the expressions of everyone's faces at the brand new architectural feat- a tower named after the creater himself, Gustave Eiffel, and the wonders to behold during those fateful days.

Fast forward the present century, and I see myself yearning to be in Shanghai for this year's World Exhibition.

The past couple of days, I have been looking at the pavilions that are in store there- it runs from May to October- where its believed that 70 million visitors (the most in history of the World Exhibitions) are going to be centered around this amazing city.

I seriously wish I could go..it would be such a dream!

Here are some that have absolutely blown me away:

"Seed Cathedral" - the UK's pavilion:

"Ice Cube", made of block lavas with crystal-like transparent adornments on the outside- Iceland's pavilion

China's pavilion

Russia's pavilion

South Korea's pavilion

They all look so utterly stunning! Visit the Shanghai World Exhibition site for more pavilions and learn more about what's going on.

While I'm at Shanghai, apart from the World Expo, I would most definitely go to Bund, and stroll around the French Concession, which is one of the best parts of Shanghai I'm told and the Old Town, where the The Huxinting Teahouse is a popular spot for tea drinking lovers such as yours truly!

Even back in the day during the '30's, Shanghai was like Paris in China...it must have been so lovely!

Books

"There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly" by Jeremy Holmes- I happened to come upon this, while I was at my favorite bookstore, and I just loved the artistic detailing of this book. You don't have to be a child to appreciate and love such clever wonders of children's books- yet at the same time, this is no ordinary sort of book either!

Music Of A Life by Andrei Makine is heartfelt and conveys this dreamlike quality in his writing, where there are rich characters as Alexei Berg, a classical pianist with parents as a renowned playwright, and his mother a famed opera singer, with a story that falls deeply within the atmosphere of World War Two. I literally read it from start to finish.

Automata

There's such an interesting world behind the Automata. Automata are mechanical figures that are made out of very complicated clockworks and can do different forms of movements such as singing, dancing, and even writing. A lot of creators have done very interesting Automata as far back as ancient times.

One of my favorites have got to be Tom Haney's work, and here are some that I especially love:

"Wanderlust", where the globe turns the man's pointer across the surface in search of his next destination. The globe stops at random spots every five seconds and the figure's head follows the pointer up and down the globe.

"A Collector of Thoughts"

Film

Albert Lamorisse's The Red Balloon

The Red Balloon is such an endearing film that is remarkably short, but full of surprises.

Brian Selznick could not have said it any better when in his essay, about this film he sums up how I felt watching this charming film: "As a child, I longed for two specific things that I now realize Lamorisse’s movie embodies: the presence of a loving friend and the knowledge that real magic exists in the world."

I highly recommend for all to see.

People

Georges Méliès

He was a famous filmmaker who worked from the 1890s through the 1920s. He actually made the world’s first science fiction film called A Trip to the Moon.

The first time I stumbled upon this film last summer, I took an instant liking to it.

Art

From Denmark, Peter Callesen: Here is a man who can do wonders with cut paper. I never would have thought to think such an imaginative way, and am glad that there are such great minds that can come before us and make us see things in a whole new light.

Alive But Dead, 2006.

Inspirational

Lastly (but certainly not the least) I came across what has got to be the most touching story that has truly moved me to tears, and that is the story of a dog named Hachiko. There has been a recent American film of it called Hachiko: A Dog's Story, with Richard Gere and Joan Allen.

Originally, it took place in Japan where he belonged to a professor.

Throughout the professor's life, Hachi would always see his loving owner to the front of the Shibuya train station, and would meet him there punctually there at the end of the day when the professor gets off the train after work.

This continues to happen as an everyday routine until unexpectedly, the professor suddenly passes away, and so never arrived at the train station where Haichi stood waiting.

Since then, everyday for the next nine years, Haichi continued to sit in front of that train station waiting for his owner to return. With undying devotion, he stood there waiting until the end of his days.

Hearing this extraordinary tale made me believe all the more of the wonder of devotion, loyalty, and unconditional love that can cross beyond human bondage.

And that's all for now, ciao :)

Note: Pictures are via Tumblr and respectful links.