An Absolutely Gorgeous Day

And, once again, I have to work. After today I have the next 5 days off. You watch, the weather will deteriorate as the 5 days progress, but I am determined to go diving at least one of those days. Maybe we'll even do 2 dives.

Writing feels good today and tonight is Writer's. We're doing Project Night where we each work on our own project for the 2 hours. I'm going to write poetry. I've got lots more Bonaire pictures than I have Bonaire poems, ditto for The Clearing, and I need both for my poetry blog. Time to put some work in the bank for future posts.

September 3--Chinese School, Portrait of Empress Dowager Cixi. They called her the Pearl Empress because of her great love of the mysterious white orbs. Some said it was because of her flawless skin that shone like a pearl in the lamplight. Others said it was because the Emperor had called her "my pearl" during a bout of lovemaking. Whatever the reason, Cixi was always covered with pearls. There were pearls in her ears, of course, and pearl ornaments in her lustrous black hair. She were pearl rings on every finger, and bracelets and anklets of them. Even her everyday robes were embroidered with them and her ceremonial robes were weighted with the largest, most perfect pearls in the kingdom. Whenever anyone asked Cixi why she wore so many pearls she told them that they reminded her of the moon and she loved the moon. She never told anyone the true reason. She was a pearl diver's daughter. Each day her mother had dived naked into the frigid sea, her wooden collecting tub tied to her waist and floating above her. When Cixi was small she rode in the tub while Oma went down for minutes at a time to collect the oysters that held the pearls. Down and up, down and up she went, cold and gasping, until one day she went down and didn't come up. Cixi's father sold her to a woman who took her to the capital where she was sold into service in the palace of the emperor's women. There she caught the eye of the young prince who would be emperor and from there became his wife and the dowager when he died defending his borders and her son ascended to the throne. Cixi knew that her oma gave her life for the glowing white beads so she wore them, as many as she could, to honor the sacrifice of the young woman who had given her life.

Interesting. Time to leave for work.
--Barbara