The Little Prince and his Rose

Aphrodite Rose

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On my balcony there is a beautiful rose. It was a present two years ago. It is called Aphrodite. It bloomed happily all last Summer and then faded away. Now in the middle of Winter a solitary rose has bloomed, quite magnificently. It makes me think of the Little prince and also Beauty and the Beast come to that, and all sorts of things like 'A thing of beauty is a joy for ever.' You know what it's like.

Anyway I spent my childhood in a literary world of Winnie-the-Pooh, Beatrix Potter, Enid Blyton and Wind in the Willows. They were the friends that shaped my philosophy on life.

 I didn't come across ' The Little Prince' by Antoine Saint Exupèry until I was a teenager.
We had to read another book by Saint-Exupery for A level. It was called 'Vol de Nuit', and was about the pilot of a mail plane and to this day the images and emotions described so vividly in that book accompany me whenever I am on an aeroplane. Powerful writing indeed.

So that's when I got to read about 'the Little Prince' and his rose, the fox, the drawing of the hat which is an elephant, the snake and the whole of life's lesson therein

I went to see the film version of 'the Little prince' last week. It was quite beautiful, and could not have been easy to transfer to the big screen, but it works. The parts of the book are in paper and the other parts of a little girl, her mum and an old man who lives next door are in modern day cartoon style.

Afterwards over hot chocolate and spritz we discussed the life lessons from the story.
There is a lot about solitude and growing up and becoming an adult, but for me the main lessons come from his relationship with the Rose and the Fox.

The Little Prince looks after the Rose so then the Rose needs him and he tames the fox, so then he is responsible for the fox.  The Little Prince thinks the rose is unique but then he sees lots of roses and it takes the fox to make him realize that his rose is still unique , because it's his. If we give our heart to someone, our love and affection then we start to need them. There are people in our lives that need us and we are responsible for them.

What do you think?

Laughing together and crying alone

 'Laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and you cry alone,' was often heard while I was growing up, my mum would often say this. For a long time I thought she meant that if you were happy and laughing then everyone else would like to join in with you but if you felt sad it was better if you went away in a quiet corner somewhere until you felt more cheerful, like it's not fair to show other people your sadness. My job was to be cheerful.
 The other day though I happened to come across this poem that she must have been quoting from and I  thought maybe it has a different more negative meaning. Other people aren't interested in your sad state. I know I am very grateful to those friends that let me get things of my chest every now and then. The ones that don't abandon you when you go through a bad patch, that like being with you whatever the weather.

The poem is called 'Solitude' by Ella Wheeler Wilcox, (1850 - 1919)

Laugh, and the world laughs with you,
weep, and you weep alone.
for sad old earth must borrow its mirth,
But has trouble enough of its own.
Sing, and the hills will answer,
Sigh, it is lost on the air,
the echoes bound to a joyful sound,
But shrink from voicing care.

Rejoice, and men will seek you,
Grieve, and they turn and go.
They want full measure of all your pleasure,
But they do not need your woe.
Be glad, and your friends are many,
be sad, and you lose them all,
There are none to decline your nectared wine,
But alone you must drink life's gall.

Oatmeal Cookies dipped in chocolate

These cookies are so easy to make and are actually good for you, because they contain oats which help steady blood sugar, of course there is some sugar and butter as well and they are even better dipped in melted chocolate, but.. there are the oats! Make them today for the weekend , they keep well in an airtight container for up to a week.

Oatmeal Chocolate Cookies

125g butter
125g self -raising flour
125g light brown sugar
125g oats
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1tbsp golden syrup
125g melted chocolate

Heat the oven to 180 and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.

In a large bowl mix together the sugar,flour, oats and bicarbonate of soda.
Melt the butter and golden syrup together over a low heat in a small saucepan and add to the dry ingredients and mix well.
Divide the mixture into about 16 balls and lay them on the baking tray, then flatten them a little with a spoon.
Bake for 15 - 20 minutes until golden then cool for about ten minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Melt the chocolate over a very low heat and then use to decorate the biscuits.

Transfer the biscuits to a wire rack so the chocolate hardens before serving.