Did you know that Henry David Thoreau had a flute?
You recall the very first quotation, the one which resonated with me because of a childhood love for the books of Louisa May Alcott - "I am not afraid of storms, because I am learning to sail my ship." Almost immediately you introduced me to Henry David Thoreau. Today, with a poorly eleven-year old snuggled on the sofa in front of the fire, I watched a film version of Little Women which referred to her home in Concorde. Remembering that this was where Thoreau and Emerson lived I googled and found out that they were very friendly with Louisa's father, a prominent transcendentalist. Louisa received lessons from Henry Thoreau on the natural history of the area, often following him with other children on his walks. Many years later and after his death she wrote a poem in tribute to him - "Thoreau's Flute". They are buried a few metres from each other in Authors' Ridge, Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. A few years ago a children's book, with woodcut illustrations, was written by Julie Dunlap, " Louisa May and Mr. Thoreau's Flute.
How some of those older writers still live on.
No. I had no idea that he had a flute.
ReplyDeleteIn the opportunity shop that is near the end of the main street of the town over the mountain, where we go shopping. I looked through the books they had for sale and found a small book that had an inscription in the cover. The inscription was in ink and dated 1943. The book is R W Emerson - Essays and Representative Men and now I only have to find or steal the time to read it.