August 2024

August 2024

It’s been another relatively exhausting duration. When is it not? At least I finished with the writing of Basic Bliss for Everyone – roughly 340 pages. And now it is the search for a publisher. I am fairly certain that this will be my last book. I have the article “The Development of Earth Spirituality in Europe / Dark Green Religion in Europe” to do next. Then maybe it will be just retirement, reading and swimming?

House guests included Barbara (departed on the 28th), Rix & Sylvester (7th to the 12th), and Prudence (arrived on the 27th; departing on the 5th of September when Carlo & Jean-Christophe are coming for lunch, and we have dinner reservations at the Hotel Provençal that night with Penny and Gillie who is arriving on the 3rd).

There have been coffees in town with Becky and Denise, and also with Penny, Guy & Caroline. At the Calalou, Barbara, Richard and I had cocktails with Joanne and Liliane. There has been a Vide Grenier as well as several marchée nocturnelles. And the dinners: at Solea with Penny, Guy & Caroline, Peter & Alex, Sylvester & Rix, Barbara, Richard & me; at Bruno’s with Rix & Sylvester, Barbara, Richard & me; at Natacha & Jonathan’s with Barbara, Richard & me; at Penny’s with Guy & Caroline, Peter & Alex, Sylvester & Rix, Barbara, Richard & me; with Barbara treating Richard & me at Les Petit Provençal des

Chouchous; at Penny’s with Barbara, Richard & me; and at Saint-Marc with Prudence, Richard & me. We also had a luncheon chez nous with Evelyn, Nicole & Sebastian. And with Prudence, we did the lake tour and the Temple of Apollo.

I’ve enjoyed a phone call with Marie-Laure and also a jazz evening at Joëlle & Richard’s in Fox with the Bonaventur’trio. Robin came one afternoon and towed the Golf off from Petit Claude’s. And I was interviewed & recorded for the PRX podcast series Magic in the United States (https://www.magicintheunitedstates.com/) on “the arc of American astrological

practices” by Heather Freeman (University of North Carolina at Charlotte), Amber Walker and Noor Gill. I’ve also finished reading Dutch historian Johan Huizinga’s Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element in Culture (1949) which I found purely fascinating. He analyses play as proceeding and giving rise to civilisation. On the basis of this, I added an addendum to Basic Bliss.

Cinema this month included Jeff Nichols’ The Bikeriders (2023) which I did not care much for apart for Jodie Comer; Kelly O'Sullivan and Alex Thompson’s Ghostlight (2024) which was delightful; and Doug Liman’s The Instigators with Matt Damon and Cassey Affleck which was nothing overly special but enjoyable to watch. Hong Chau was notable. For therest, it rained as it always does during the town’s fête. Otherwise, we have had some wonderful scorching weather with the basin offering frequent and welcomed relief. I have had to endure almost constant internet outages but at least did get to watch Kamala Harris’ acceptance speech. And for both the Portunalia start of the August feriae and the Volturnalia conclusion, Richard and I swam in the river at the Roman bridge in Salernes.

Among the best of news was that Pierre in Amsterdam let us know that Richard’s Dutch nationality has been confirmed. Richard went almost immediately to the Dutch community further down our road to tell someone, but he saw no one there. We will go now to Amsterdam toward the end of the month for his citizenship ceremony. Hopefully, we will also be able to move the rest of our things from the room there we have rented to the farm.

And, finally, I checked spontaneously one evening on my former intense and unrequited love in San Francisco who was in part the cause of why I left the city originally to come to Europe and who also was instrumental let alone inspirational in my course of writing sonnets. I learned that he had died two years ago but was much appreciated and honoured by his former students.

Sonnet #320

“If ever me you need to come to you,”

The final sonnet words declared ago,

“To let me know is all you need to do.”

And now I learn no more’s your golden glow

At least tellurianly to touch, to hold,

And no request shall ever come to me.

Sad freedom this, no choice as if paroled,

Nor need to fear a possible would be.

Yet thanks remain for launching gift bestowed,

Seas crossed, adventures had, and youthful joy

Recalled along with pain and dreams outflowed.

“The world is its own magic” fauntleroy:

Westward went you to find the East, and I

The east to know the West and love’s right guy.