Did you know that Mr. Alfred de Musset (https://bit.ly/2MEa67v), the French Romantic poet and dramatist was born on December 11, 1810 in Paris where he died in 1857?
Mr. Alfred de Musset wrote about themes like sorrow, friendship, and of course love. Indeed, one of his famous quotes about love goes likes this (French is followed by English and German):
“La vie est un sommeil, l’amour en est le rêve, et vous aurez vécu, si vous avez aimé”.
“Life is a sleep and love is its dream; and you have lived if you have loved”.
“Das Leben ist Schlaf, dessen Traum die Liebe ist. Du wirst gelebt haben, wenn du geliebt haben wirst”.
To pay tribute to Mr. Musset’s memory and to celebrate romantic love, Bambi will end this brief post with three beautiful French songs (at least according to her :). Only the first one is sub-titled in English. Regardless of your own definition of love, long live the latter in your current daily life or maybe in your dreams… if you are interested ❤️.
It is hard to imagine “Amto” (or amty, meaning my aunty) Salwa not alive, not active, not full of life… Yet, despite our deep sorrow, it is easy to be happy for her to be in a more dignified place.
Bambi joins her love and prayers to Salwa’s family and MANY loved ones especially in Lebanon and Brazil, but also in Canada, Australia, and elsewhere in the world.
Salwa has touched and inspired so many lives, including Bambi’s: Obrigada! Thank you! Merci or Shoukran Amto habibi!
For those who have known her closely, Salwa had a sense of perspective and humour in life, which served well throughout her long life in her beloved countries, Brazil and Lebanon where she chose to retire.
Did Bambi say retire? Salwa never retired. She remained more active than ever in the workplace up until the last couple of years of her life; in the pandemic and Lebanon’s multiple crises.
It is not Salwa that has retired from life now. It is life that has retired from her.
Some say it’s God’s will. He knows when it is our time to go. Others say the same with different words: “The lamp ran out of oil” (Khello, these are your beautiful words…). Yet others who believe in the magic of soccer secretly dreamed that if Brazil would have stayed in the Word’s Cup yesterday, Salwa may have lived a bit longer today. This may be Bambi’s own silliness. Of course, at her age, Bambi knows that life does not work like this.
Yes, too bad for Brazil (bravo for Croatia). Amto Salwa may or may have not been aware enough to know what happened yesterday. However, as her picture above (July 2018) shows: She was a fan of Brazil! She also loved her Lebanon so dearly to the point of returning to it after having escaped its tough economic days by boat several decades ago, way before its civil war (1975-1990). Sadly, she saw her birth country in such bad shape lately.
It is Bambi’s prayer that Lebanon will finally rise again; so Salwa’s grandchildren living there will see better days. It is also her prayer that Salwa’s grandchildren and great grandchildren will also see much better days in Brazil as well.
May your memory be eternal, Salwa. As you used to often joke with your younger colleagues: You had a fiancé, called Dimitrios (Saint Dimitrios is where your ancestors are buried. Sadly, tomorrow you will join them all). They would believe you up until you say with a big smile and laughter: “I love him so much but I am not in a rush to join him :)”. It is the time, Amto. Time to be with Saint Dimitrios and to join your loved ones, including your/our dear Khalil. Please keep an eye on us from above and we will keep you in our hearts forever as well.
To conclude this post meant to honour her aunt Salwa, Bambi will send her heartfelt condolences to Lourdes, Georges and to all Salwa’s relatives, from the senior ones to the youngest ones. Bambi loves you all ❤️. As for you Amto Salwa, here is a prayer to Saint Dimitrios… May he welcome your soul and guide it to the eternal light, which will never end, like your own oil…
A bouquet of love and courage wishes to Ms. Céline Dion!
Bambi just listened to this extremely moving video where Ms. Céline’s Dion informed us of her very rare recent diagnosis of “stiff-person syndrome”. As she shared with her fans, she has been suffering with health issues for a very long time. It turned out that what she has is a very rare neurological condition. It can be described as follows: “an autoimmune disorder of the nervous system, often resulting in progressive, severe muscle stiffness and spasms of the lower extremities and back. It also can affect other body regions” (https://mayocl.in/3VZW1nu).
If she may, Bambi would like to send Céline Dion her love and heartfelt positive vibes, along with her fond regards for her own courage and for the courage of her supportive children. She prays for her full recovery until reaching the most optimal quality of life she can have. May her own song “Courage” inspire her throughout her healing journey. All the best to her and to her multidisciplinary team of care providers!
Canada, Lebanon, and the entire world is behind you Céline! Lâche pas la patate ❤️ !
The first French Christmas Medley does no need any introduction. You will recognize the melodies where you hear them. One thing is sure: Ms. Hiba Tawaji’s voice is so uniquely beautiful. And what can we say about her look and way of being? She puts her heart and soul into her songs. Imagine when the latter are Christmas carols from her own childhood. It is simply magical.
The following song-prayer gives Bambi goosebumps every year since her early childhood in her birth country. Like all the kids of her age, she sang it too (mind you, once, this was on TV, along with her classroom– thank Goodness as the group covers the frog’s voice :)). Seriously now, this song is about the night of Christmas [Laylat El Milad]. A night when hatred ends. A night when war stops. A night when love blossoms. A night when the planet becomes full of blossoming flowers… and love!
The picture above shows a citizen from Northern Lebanon (Akkar) walking out of a hospital with the dead body of his newborn. The latter spent 25 days in the neonatal intensive care unit. His dad could not afford to pay the $2,500medical bill. In order to get the dead body of his child, he left his own car to the hospital (in guarantee).
According to the Arabic-speaking An Nahar (https://bit.ly/3VXJqB9), the Director of the hospital reported not having asked for this guarantee. Maybe he did not ask specifically, but he was certainly willing to take it.
The saddest part of this story is this dad’s grief (along with the extent of misery of the people of Lebanon). If Bambi may, she would like to offer this Lebanese father her condolences, along with Ms. Linda Lemay’s French song entitled “Pas de mots” [“There are no words“]:
“…There is no term to describe the father. The one who tucks his boy into the graveyard. Never a single poet. Never a single pastor. Never a single author. Had enough letters for so much pain…”.
Time flies yet we pause to remember tragic as well as happier times:
Tragic like the Polytechnique massacre that occurred 33 Decembers ago. May the memory of “Geneviève Bergeron, Maryse Laganière, Hélène Colgan, Maryse Leclair, Nathalie Croteau, Anne-Marie Lemay, Barbara Daigneault, Sonia Pelletier, Anne-Marie Edward, Michèle Richard, Maud Haviernick, Annie St-Arneault, Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz, and Annie Turcotte” be eternal.
Happier or hopeful like Santa’s Day or Saint-Nicholas’ Day. Yes, today is a day of love and giving. A day of respect and compassion. Yes, time for an extended hand to share or to help, as needed. In the spirit of love, there is always room for light and healing; instead of the darkness of hate and killing.
To highlight this day, with its horrific as well as merrier times (Happy Name Day again Nicolas ❤️!), one song comes to Bambi’s mind. It is about love and humanity in a world increasingly blinded by narrow-mindedness and hate… yet always with room for the hope of increased LOVE, thankfully.
She does not know about you, but Bambi loves both Ms. Ginette Reno and Christmas carols. So imagine, our Canadian diva singing Christmas songs. Wow, is there anything more warming than her voice and happier than those carols?
For some, these carols may represent a re-connection with their childhood (if they were part of it). For others, theses songs are just beautiful melodies to re-discover or a way of learning the beautiful French language. Yet for others, these songs may mean the world from a spiritual point of view. Regardless, one thing is sure, Ms. Reno is FULL of talent. Thanks to her for this new Christmas medley!
Mr. Omar Khayyam, a Persian poet, mathematician, and astronomer died in Neyshābūr on December 4, 1131. It was like this day, but 891 years ago.
You may be familiar with the English writer Edward FitzGerald’s translation of his Robāʿīyāt [or “Quatrains”] in a now classical book, which is entitled the “Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám” (1859).
The book cited above has been translated into several languages. Bambi is lucky to have a German translation of it, thanks to a precious gift from an aunt. To honour the memory and work of Mr. Oma Khayyam, she found an English song based on Khayyam’s “Rubaiyat“.
Words cannot die, especially if we honour them. Long live words. Long live poetry.
Bambi has no clue why, but her Youtube kept showing her videos about ducks today.
A man taking his duck to the subway of New York.
Another person taking his duck to Ikea… Well, not really another individual; indeed, Bambi could not resist to the temptation of watching the second video. When she did it, she discovered it was the same man in the video above. This means the same cute duck!
Now, why would anyone think of taking a duck to a crowded human-made place like a subway? She wondered. Of course, this man is free and his duck does not seem to be miserable at all. On the country, it appeared to be relaxed and happy even. Surely, not afraid of people who took picture of it or even touched it.
Anyhow, Bambi will spare you the third video seen on her Youtube screen about ducks exploring a house. She just want to end this post with a friendly thought for this cute duck, for a charming pelican bird in Beirut she has older posts on (as you can see further below), and for a couple of ducks, which visit her backyard, almost every spring. She loves these two dearly. If she may, she will offer them ALL two songs, one in French and the other in English, hoping you will enjoy them too :)!
