Poem - Golden Gate Bridge

 *Inspired by my recent trip to San Francisco, I post this poem.  For trip details check out my other blog.

The Mighty Task is Done

By Joseph P. Strauss, Chief Engineer
Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District

Written upon completion of the building of the Golden Gate Bridge in May 1937

At last the mighty task is done;
Resplendent in the western sun
The Bridge looms mountain high;
Its titan piers grip ocean floor,
Its great steel arms link shore with shore,
Its towers pierce the sky.

On its broad decks in rightful pride,
The world in swift parade shall ride,
Throughout all time to be;
Beneath, fleet ships from every port,
Vast landlocked bay, historic fort,
And dwarfing all--the sea.

To north, the Redwood Empire's gates;
'To south, a happy playground waits,
in Rapturous appeal;
Here nature, free since time began,
Yields to the restless moods of man,
Accepts his bonds of steel.

Launched midst a thousand hopes and fears,
Damned by a thousand hostile sneers,
Yet ne'er its course was stayed,
But ask of those who met the foe
Who stood alone when faith was low,
Ask them the price they paid.

Ask of the steel, each strut and wire,
Ask of the searching, purging fire,
That marked their natal hour;
Ask of the mind, the hand, the heart,
Ask of each single, stalwart part,
What gave it force and power.

An Honored cause and nobly fought
And that which they so bravely wrought,
Now glorifies their deed,
No selfish urge shall stain its life,
Nor envy, greed, intrigue, nor strife,
Nor false, ignoble creed.

High overhead its lights shall gleam,
Far, far below life's restless stream,
Unceasingly shall flow;
For this was spun its lithe fine form,
To fear not war, nor time, nor storm,
For Fate had meant it so.

To Kill a Mockingbird - 50th Anniversary

I came home from work, got the mail, sat down and started reading.  I stopped only to post this little note!!!!

 I am reading To Kill a Mocking Bird, by Harper Lee courtesy of Harperperennial (Modern Classics)   Thank you Amy.

Yesterday marked the 50th anniversary of the book, and I have never read it.  I have seen the movie a few times.   I have to say out of all the book notes and commentary I have ever heard, this one seems to top many, if not, most lists.   I am sorry I haven't read it but in a way it is cool to have something so great to read now when I can appreciate it most.

I am so thrilled  to be reading this book this Summer.   I can't wait to report back on it.

Book Description

Harper Lee's classic novel of a lawyer in the Deep South defending a black man charged with the rape of a white girl.

One of the best-loved stories of all time, To Kill a Mockingbird has earned many distinctions since its original publication in 1960. It won the Pulitzer Prize, has been translated into more than forty languages, sold more than thirty million copies worldwide, and been made into an enormously popular movie. Most recently, librarians across the country gave the book the highest of honors by voting it the best novel of the twentieth century.

For more info click here.

New Book! Far Bright Star, Robert Olmstead

Hello Everyone:
I haven't participated in Mailbox Monday in a while, but I wanted to post about this great book I received from Algonquin! Thank you!  I think this book sounds awesome and I wanted to share with everyone.  

About Far Bright Star

The year is 1916. The enemy, Pancho Villa, is elusive. Terrain is unforgiving. Through the mountains and across the long dry stretches of Mexico, Napoleon Childs, an aging cavalryman, leads an expedition of inexperienced horse soldiers on seemingly fruitless searches. Though he is seasoned at such missions, things go terribly wrong, and his patrol is suddenly at the mercy of an enemy intent on their destruction. After witnessing the demise of his troops, Napoleon is left by his captors to die in the desert.

Through him we enter the conflicted mind of a warrior as he tries to survive against all odds, as he seeks to make sense of a lifetime of senseless wars and to reckon with the reasons a man would choose a life on the battlefield. Olmstead, an award-winning writer, has created a tightly wound novel that is as moving as it is terrifying.

About Robert Olmstead

Robert Olmstead is the author of six previous books. Coal Black Horse was the winner of the Heartland Prize for Fiction and the Ohioana award and was a #1 Book Sense Pick and a Borders Original Voices selection. The recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and an NEA grant, he is a professor at Ohio Wesleyan University.



Update on me!  I am slowly getting some readng Mojo back. I am reading Hungry Woman in Paris, by Josephina Lopez and I am re-reading The Witching Hour by Anne Rice.   So many of you have sent me regards and love regarding my mom. I wanted to report to everyone that she is now cancer free.  She had her PET Scan a few weeks ago and all is great!  Thanks to all for you kind words, notes, prayers and thoughts.

Happy Hump Day and before you know it I'll be popping by your blogs!!  

Love and Sunshine,
Toni