It was too altogether too slimy on the jetty, as well as being uncomfortably exposed to the wind, so Algy hopped over to a grassy patch on the foreshore and tucked himself down behind a large orange buoy. Dark showers were sweeping across the sky at regular intervals, but in between the downpours the sun lit up the world with a beautiful, stormy light, and Algy decided to watch it until the next icy squall swept in from the sea…

[This post is especially dedicated to Algy’s friends Fern @qbn-scholar and Pete @tvoom 🙂  Thinking of a past “In Conversation” critique which Algy watched, Algy wonders whether his friends will be bothered by the wee piece of turquoise rope, which could have been “cloned” out, and what they will think of the startling orange buoys… 🙂 ]

Source: adventuresofalgy

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Des Menschen Seele Gleicht dem Wasser

Algy flew down to the Sound and perched in a gorse bush already covered in February gold. It was a stormy day, with rapidly alternating phases of darkness and light, and many heavy showers were sweeping in along the Sound from the open ocean. Algy was thinking of some of his friends, who were threatened by dark storm clouds in their own lives, and as he watched the next wave of clouds approach he sang one of his favourite “songs” for them:

Des Menschen Seele
Gleicht dem Wasser:
Vom Himmel kommt es,
Zum Himmel steigt es,
Und wieder nieder
Ewig wechselnd

The human soul
is like water:
it comes from heaven,
it rises to heaven,
and again it must descend to earth
in an eternal alternation.

Listen to this beautiful recording of Gesang der Geister über den Wassern in a setting by Schubert, performed by the Vienna Vocalists and the String Ensemble of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

[Algy is singing part of Gesang der Geister über den Wassern (The Song of the Spirit over the Waters) by the late 18th/early 19th century German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. You can read the full text of the poem in German and English, but Algy feels that the English translation given there does not do full justice to the original.]

Algy flew down to the Sound and perched in a gorse bush already covered in February gold. It was a stormy day, with rapidly alternating phases of darkness and light, and many heavy showers were sweeping in along the Sound from the open ocean. Algy was thinking of some of his friends, who were threatened by dark storm clouds in their own lives, and as he watched the next wave of clouds approach he sang one of his favourite “songs” for them:

Des Menschen Seele
Gleicht dem Wasser:
Vom Himmel kommt es,
Zum Himmel steigt es,
Und wieder nieder
Ewig wechselnd

The human soul
is like water:
it comes from heaven,
it rises to heaven,
and again it must descend to earth
in an eternal alternation.

Listen to this beautiful recording of Gesang der Geister über den Wassern in a setting by Schubert, performed by the Vienna Vocalists and the String Ensemble of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

[Algy is singing part of Gesang der Geister über den Wassern (The Song of the Spirit over the Waters) by the late 18th/early 19th century German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. You can read the full text of the poem in German and English, but Algy feels that the English translation given there does not do full justice to the original.]

Source: adventuresofalgy

Algy is reposting this image for all his good friends in the USA and around the world who are feeling shock, despair and depression today.

No matter how things may seem in dark times, Algy knows that the majority of human creatures are good and kind. He has seen so many posts already today from the wonderful Tumblr community he shares – some are frightened, some despairing, some shocked, and some simply promoting hope and love. Algy sends you all lots of extra special fluffy hugs at this time. Even when things look dark, there must always be light too, and Algy sees a great deal of light in this wonderful community.

Be strong, stay safe, and remain in the light! Peace, love and fluffy hugs to you all xoxo

It was time to leave the beautiful woodlands by the river, so Algy began to make his way home, but the days were much shorter now, and he could not manage to fly all the way before night fell. He decided to rest for a while in the forest which clothed the steep hillside near the deep, dark loch. It was dark in the forest too, even during the day, as the tall trees blocked out much of the light, but Algy was not afraid. He knew that there could be no darkness without light, and sure enough, here and there, patches of bright sunlight filtered through the crowded branches to the forest floor. Settling himself down on a bed of soft moss, Algy drowsily watched the changing patchwork of light through the trees until he fell asleep…

The day had been mainly fine, and Algy had decided to fly out to the lighthouse, where he could gaze far across the sea in many directions, and take deep breaths of exceedingly fresh air…

He perched on the mass of rock near the lighthouse tower and gazed into the west, where the sea often shone with a beautiful silvery light. The dark shadow of a great bank of cloud was beginning to cross the water from the low island on the horizon, but for the moment he was still in the hazy sunshine… 

Algy is delighted to announce that this image – Algy Brightens the Shadows in Life – is the very first photo portrait of him to be made available on a range of products in his assistant’s Redbubble shop.

So carry Algy with you, to brighten the shadows in your life – a fluffy bird shining on your iPhone or iPad case, notebook, T-shirt, tote bag… or even hanging on your wall 🙂

All purchases help Algy to continue his adventures.

Algy has been horribly shocked and deeply saddened by the terrorist attack in Brussels. It is impossible for a fluffy bird to understand how some human creatures can be so heartlessly violent and cruel. But as he perched beside the sea, wondering – like so many of his friends – how such things could happen, the sun suddenly emerged from behind a black cloud and lit up the dark rocks. In the burst of light and warmth, Algy thought of all his wonderful friends, and realised that the majority of humans were really good and kind. So Algy sang a fluffy bird song, praying that the good and kind would triumph and there would be far more fluffiness instead of violence in the world…

At times the world seems covered in darkness, and Algy knows that many of his friends are struggling against the darkness at this especially dark time. But light can always conquer darkness, so Algy perched on a rock by the wild ocean, gazing at a pathway of light, and sang some verses by Goethe for his friends.

Des Menschen Seele
Gleicht dem Wasser:
Vom Himmel kommt es,
Zum Himmel steigt es,
Und wieder nieder
Ewig wechselnd

The human soul
is like water:
it comes from heaven,
it rises to heaven,
and again it must descend to earth
in an eternal alternation.

Listen to this beautiful recording of Gesang der Geister über den Wassern by the Vienna Vocalists and the String Ensemble of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

[Algy is singing Gesang der Geister über den Wassern (The Song of the Spirit over the Waters) by the late 18th/early 19th century German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. You can read the full text of the poem in German and English,
but Algy feels that the English translation given there does not do
full justice to the original.]

Algy perched on a rock, and watched the evening sun go down. The summer – such as it was – had almost ended, and the nights were growing rapidly longer. At such a northerly latitude, the amount of daylight varied hugely over the year, with only a few hours of semi-darkness at midsummer, and very little light at all in midwinter. This meant that in spring and autumn Algy could watch the hours of daylight alter perceptibly from day to day, as the change was so rapid. Although he knew that spring would come again, it seemed a very long way off, and between now and then lay a long, dark winter, for which folk were very poorly prepared in the West Highlands this year, owing to the unusually dismal summer…

So Algy dedicates this post to all his friends in those northern countries for whom the approaching autumn will bring long, long hours of darkness, and a slow, arduous struggle through the winter until the sun returns again. Algy is thinking of you all, and sends you extra special fluffy hugs xoxo