I like how Elizabeth Gardener Bouguereau has painted David giving the honor for his victory of the lion to the LORD.



How often we have "lions" in our lives that need to be fought in the strength of the LORD!  Then we can give Him the glory....

Our piece of music this week from Ludwig Van Beethoven is Fur Elise (for Elise) a well-known favorite of many.  You listen on You-Tube here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_UOuSklNL4&feature=related

Poetry by Amy Carmichael - 


          THE IMPOSSIBLE
For all that seems impossible,
   For all things hard,
I thank Thee who art my exceeding Joy
   And great Reward.


For what I have not strength to do,
   Where I must fail,
All glory to the Victor in the fight,
   Who will prevail.


      THE FAITHFUL SHEPHERD
As the faithful shepherd toileth,
   Through the briars, up the steep,
Lest some evil prowler spoileth
   His poor foolish wandering sheep,


So, great Shepherd, would we, caring
   For each several precious one,
Something of Thy travail sharing,
   Seek Thy sheep till set of sun.


Only twelve short hours--oh, never
   Let the sense of urgency
Die in us, Good Shepherd, ever
   Let us search the hills with Thee.

Elizabeth Gardener Bouguereau - The Shepherd-David, Ludwig Van Beethoven - Fur Elise, and Amy Carmichael

I like how Elizabeth Gardener Bouguereau has painted David giving the honor for his victory of the lion to the LORD.



Our piece of music this week from Ludwig Van Beethoven is Fur Elise (for Elise) a well-known favorite of many.  You listen on You-Tube here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_UOuSklNL4&feature=related

Poetry by Amy Carmichael - 


          THE IMPOSSIBLE
For all that seems impossible,
   For all things hard,
I thank Thee who art my exceeding Joy
   And great Reward.


For what I have not strength to do,
   Where I must fail,
All glory to the Victor in the fight,
   Who will prevail.


      THE FAITHFUL SHEPHERD
As the faithful shepherd toileth,
   Through the briars, up the steep,
Lest some evil prowler spoileth
   His poor foolish wandering sheep,


So, great Shepherd, would we, caring
   For each several precious one,
Something of Thy travail sharing,
   Seek Thy sheep till set of sun.


Only twelve short hours--oh, never
   Let the sense of urgency
Die in us, Good Shepherd, ever
   Let us search the hills with Thee.

Elizabeth Gardener Bouguereau - Soap Bubbles, Ludwig Von Beethoven,

New poems by Amy Carmichael today.  Hope you enjoy the painting and music again.  How is this working out for you all?  Would you prefer a new painting and piece of music weekly or do you prefer having them for two consecutive weeks as we've been doing?  I'd like to hear from you what would work best for you.  Thanks
  This week's painting is Soap Bubbles by

Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau.

Soap Bubbles by Elizabeth Gardner Bouguereau

This week's music by Ludwig Van Beethoven  is Symphony #9.  You can watch it here along with beautiful scenery:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAOTCtW9v0M&feature=related

Most of the poetry of Amy Carmichael that we are featuring is for young people but I highly recommend all of her work.  She was deeply devoted to the LORD and wrote beautiful poetry.  She didn't shrink from painful or disappointing experiences but saw them as a part of God's plan and a fellowship in His sufferings, a taking up of her cross. You can read all of her work in Mountain Breezes which is a collection of her work.


             BUBBLES
What are bubbles made of?  Tell me:
   Diamond flashes?
      Film of pearls?
See, the smooth green water curls
   Round the shoulder
      Of a boulder;
         Something shatters,
            Something Scatters,
               Dances on the polished floor;
More and more
   Come and go;
      Underflow
         Of swift water hurries past;
Bubbles frolic on it, last
   Just a moment; others run
      In their myriads, and are spun
         Down the shining, sunlit river,
            On and on, and on forever.


              OURS FOREVER
All that was ever ours is ours forever:
Glory of greenwood and the shining river,
Joy of companionship of kindred mind;
All, all is ours.  It is not left behind
Among the withered things that must decay;
It is stored up for us, somewhere, and for another day.

Elizabeth Gardener Bouguereau, Ludwig Von Beethoven, 5th Symphony, Amy Carmichael - Wonderland

I've put much of the wonderful classical pieces we've been enjoying on this blog onto the playlist at the very bottom of this blog.  Feel free to scroll down and use it as a pop-out player to continue listening to this music throughout the day.  

We've looked at William Adolphe Bouguereau now I'd like to feature paintings by his second wife, Elisabeth.  I think her paintings are very similar to her husbands and I like them a lot!  As with his work hers is realistic.  This painting makes me want to know what they were so quietly watching. The following is a brief biographical paragraph from the Art Renewal Center Museum.  You can visit that site at the link following the paragraph.  

ELIZABETH GARDENER BOUGUEREAU was an American from New Hampshire who studied with William Bouguereau, later to become his second wife after the death of his first wife Nellie a few years prior. Her art historical influence is very significant, as she undoubtedly played a role in persuading her husband to use his influence as President of the Academy, Head of the Salon, and President of the Legion d'Honneur, to convince the Academie Julien (and a few years later the École des Beaux Arts) to open their doors to women for the first time in history.

http://www.artrenewal.org/pages/artist.php?artistid=372

The next composer I would like to feature is Ludwig Van Beethoven. 

 

The following link has a biographical sketch of his life and you can also listen to a lot of his works there.  http://www.lvbeethoven.com/Bio/BiographyLudwig.html

The first piece I would like to feature is from Beethoven's 5th Symphony.  You can listen and watch it performed on the following you-tube link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6K_IuBsRM4

Our poem this week by Amy Carmichael is 


                 Wonderland
Lord, Thy little children stand
   At the opeing of the day
Bordering on Wonderland.


Very near to us it lies,
   Gathers round us as we play,
Waiting for our seeing eyes.


Wonderland is everywhere;
   Can we go where it is not?
When we go, we find Thee there.


And Thou art so very kind;
   Thou hast never once forgot
To put things for us to find.


Oh, a thousand voices call,
   "Come and find what has been hidden;
All the world's a Wonder-ball."


Father, may we take Thy hand?
   We will do as we are bidden.
Come with us to Wonderland.

Elizabeth Gardener Bouguereau, Ludwig Von Beethoven, 5th Symphony, Amy Carmichael - Wonderland

We've looked at William Adolphe Bouguereau now I'd like to feature paintings by his second wife, Elisabeth.  I think her paintings are very similar to her husbands and I like them a lot!  As with his work hers is realistic.  This painting makes me want to know what they were so quietly watching. The following is a brief biographical paragraph from the Art Renewal Center Museum.  You can visit that site at the link following the paragraph.  

ELIZABETH GARDENER BOUGUEREAU was an American from New Hampshire who studied with William Bouguereau, later to become his second wife after the death of his first wife Nellie a few years prior. Her art historical influence is very significant, as she undoubtedly played a role in persuading her husband to use his influence as President of the Academy, Head of the Salon, and President of the Legion d'Honneur, to convince the Academie Julien (and a few years later the École des Beaux Arts) to open their doors to women for the first time in history.

http://www.artrenewal.org/pages/artist.php?artistid=372

The next composer I would like to feature is Ludwig Van Beethoven. 

 

The following link has a biographical sketch of his life and you can also listen to a lot of his works there.  http://www.lvbeethoven.com/Bio/BiographyLudwig.html

The first piece I would like to feature is from Beethoven's 5th Symphony.  You can listen and watch it performed on the following you-tube link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6K_IuBsRM4

Our poem this week by Amy Carmichael is 


                 Wonderland
Lord, Thy little children stand
   At the opeing of the day
Bordering on Wonderland.


Very near to us it lies,
   Gathers round us as we play,
Waiting for our seeing eyes.


Wonderland is everywhere;
   Can we go where it is not?
When we go, we find Thee there.


And Thou art so very kind;
   Thou hast never once forgot
To put things for us to find.


Oh, a thousand voices call,
   "Come and find what has been hidden;
All the world's a Wonder-ball."


Father, may we take Thy hand?
   We will do as we are bidden.
Come with us to Wonderland.

William Adolphe Bouguereau - Girl with a Bird, Johann Sebastian Bach - Double Violin Concerto in D minor 2nd movement - Largo, and Amy Carmichael - Hast Thou No Scar?

There are wonderful details in this painting by William Adolphe Bouguereau.  It might be fun to take turns with your children noting different details and see how long you can keep going.  


There is such a delight in the things God has made in nature for us to enjoy.  When we get up close and make a connection as the girl is with the bird it is even more special.  

Johann Sebastian Bach's - Double Violin Concerto in D minor 2nd movement - Largo  is our final piece of Bach's music for now unless one of you has a favorite piece we haven't featured yet.  If someone has a suggestion we will feature it next week, otherwise we'll move on to a new composer. You can listen to today's piece on the following link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fo0K_n3VLG4

One of my heroes is Amy Carmichael who was a missionary to India and started the Dohnavur Fellowship where she raised many young girls that she rescued from temple prostitution.  The story of her life, A Chance to Die by Elisabeth Elliot is a wonderful biography.   There are also other biographies of her life written for younger children.  I highly recommend that you share her story with your family.  Also any of her devotional writings are worth reading and savoring.  The following is Wikipedia's entry on Amy:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy_Carmichael.   Amy wrote poems for young people that we will feature in coming weeks but I especially like this well-known poem of hers about the suffering that we experience as we follow Christ.

HAST THOU NO SCAR?


Hast thou no scar?
No hidden scar on foot, or side, or hand?
I hear thee sung as mighty in the land;
I hear them hail thy bright, ascendant star.
Hast thou no scar?

Hast thou no wound?
Yet I was wounded by the archers; spent,
Leaned Me against a tree to die; and rent
By ravening beasts that compassed Me, I swooned.
Hast thou no wound?

No wound? No scar?
Yet, as the Master shall the servant be,
And piercèd are the feet that follow Me.
But thine are whole; can he have followed far
Who hast no wound or scar?

William Bouguereau - Girl with Bird, Bach - Double Violin Concerto in D, Amy Carmichael - Hast Thou No Scar?

This is our final painting for now by William Bouguereau.  I like the delight in the little girl's eyes as she enjoys her pet bird.  Bouguereau was very skilled at making people look real and catching their expressions.  Again, I would welcome any comments you have this week or next on this post.

Today we'll feature our final piece by Johann Sebastian Bach for this season - Double Violin Concerto in D minor 2nd movement - Largo you can listen on the following link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fo0K_n3VLG4

One of my heroes is Amy Carmichael who was a missionary to India and started the Dohnavur Fellowship where she raised many young girls that she rescued from temple prostitution.  The story of her life, A Chance to Die by Elisabeth Elliot is a wonderful biography.   There are also other biographies of her life written for younger children.  I highly recommend that you share her story with your family.  Also any of her devotional writings are worth reading and savoring.  The following is Wikipedia's entry on Amy:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy_Carmichael.   Amy wrote poems for young people that we will feature in coming weeks but I especially like this well-known poem of hers about the suffering that we experience as we follow Christ.

HAST THOU NO SCAR?


Hast thou no scar?
No hidden scar on foot, or side, or hand?
I hear thee sung as mighty in the land;
I hear them hail thy bright, ascendant star.
Hast thou no scar?

Hast thou no wound?
Yet I was wounded by the archers; spent,
Leaned Me against a tree to die; and rent
By ravening beasts that compassed Me, I swooned.
Hast thou no wound?

No wound? No scar?
Yet, as the Master shall the servant be,
And piercèd are the feet that follow Me.
But thine are whole; can he have followed far
Who hast no wound or scar?