"Palm Tree" A Poem by Danielle Moragne, SHP'13

Guadalupe Palm
Photo taken July 2013 during the Society of the Sacred Heart Spirituality Forum hosted at
Sacred Heart Schools ~ Atherton, Calf
(Note: The poem below refers to a specific palm located in the Dunlevie Aquatic Center at Sacred Heart Prep)

Palm Tree

I followed a feathered friend
on a late Sunday afternoon
Where he took me, however,
confused me,
but he kept singing his mellow tune.

He was beckoning me to the palm tree
and that when he left me.
I saw the sun's fiery blaze
smoldering across the horizon.
The palm branches fanned, 
casting long stretched shadows on the land,
only a dark silhouette for me to see.

But that's when I noticed
the plant four feet off the ground.
The small greens buds
and fuzzy rounded leaf
told me it was a fig tree,
growing straight out of the giant palm.
One life fostering another,
both swaying slightly in the calm.

I followed a feathered friend
on a late Sunday afternoon
and found what could be
my own spot for re-centering
my sanity.

~ Danielle Moragne, SHP'13

Inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, National Poetry Month is now held every April to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture.  If you have a favorite poem written by an alum or RSCJ that you would like to share, please send to AASH PAST PRESIDENT MER 

"Red Wood Tree" A Poem by Danielle Moragne, SHP'13

Photo taken July 2013 during the Society of the Sacred Heart Spirituality Forum hosted at
Sacred Heart Schools ~ Atherton, Calf near Oakwood, the RSCJ Retirement Community

RED WOOD TREE

The rustic bark
compresses under my fingertips
as my hands slide into the 
crevices of the frayed protective layer.
The environment and wind have taken their toll
as they anxiously try to hug
this magnificent entity.

Surrounded by redwood trees,
my vision blurs.
My head spins,
deep green pines,
calming blue-gray sky,
red bark,
then stillness

Looking up, the scent of evergreens
descends into my nose,
the cannons of bark stretching out above me.
I am walking up that ladder
of branches,
slowly floating higher
and higher
to that ever present warmth, comfort, and serenity,
until every thought is dissolved.
I have reached my inner peace.

~ Danielle Moragne, SHP'13

Inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, National Poetry Month is now held every April to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture.  If you have a favorite poem written by an alum or RSCJ that you would like to share, please send to AASH PAST PRESIDENT MER 

The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meiere

Upcoming Event for Hildeth Meiere
Saturday, April 26th at Georgetown University 

Come meet the authors on Saturday, April 26th at Georgetown University!  The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meiere by Catherine Coleman Brawer and Kathleen Murphy Skolnik can be ordered by clicking here. 


PRESS RELEASE

Scholars Rediscover a Lost American Artist

Book Celebrates 90th Anniversary of Her First Masterpiece

First Release from Andrea Monfried Editions

NEW YORK, NY March, 2014 — Ninety years after the completion of her first commission at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C., a lost artist’s work is being recognized with a lavishly illustrated new book. Hildreth Meière (1892-1961) was a well-known American muralist surprisingly few have heard of today, though 100 of her masterpieces are hiding in plain sight in several American cities. On May 1, 2014, Andrea Monfried Editions will release the first monograph on her work, The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière by Catherine Coleman Brawer and Kathleen Murphy Skolnik, with photographs by the artist’s granddaughter Hildreth Meière Dunn and a foreword by noted architectural historian Richard Guy Wilson. The volume explores the life and work of the trailblazer behind some of the most spectacular murals of the 20th century. Nearly forgotten now, Meière achieved renown in an era when female artists rarely gained acceptance. In May 2014, her Pillars of Hercules (1960) will be accessible for the first time in decades, newly conserved and installed at Harvard University’s Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington, D.C. Also in May 2014, New York audiences can learn more about Meière’s monumental works when Open House New York organizes a “Meière Crawl” of the artist’s dazzling sites across Manhattan.

Hildreth Meière, 1924
AASH President (1957-1959)

ABOUT THE ARTIST:

Born and educated in New York City, Hildreth Meière left her mark on the nation including: installations at the 1939 New York World’s Fair; Radio City Music Hall’s facade (iconic figures of Dance, Drama and Song); Saint Patrick’s Cathedral (altarpiece); the banking room at One Wall Street; St. Bartholomew’s Church (stained glass and shimmering gold narthex domes telling the story of Creation); Temple Emanu-El (arch and ark in the main sanctuary); and the Nebraska State Capitol. Leading architect Bertram G. Goodhue gave her her first major commission, the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C., launching her career.

Tens of thousands of tiny glass or marble “tesserae” often appear in a single work designed by Meière and executed by European-trained craftsmen. An early proponent of Art Deco, she combined exquisite design with innovative materials and techniques during a five-decade career. In 1948 she was the first woman appointed to the New York City Art Commission, and in 1956 she became the first woman to receive the Fine Arts Medal of the American Institute of Architects. Illustrating subjects ranging from astronomy to women’s achievements, she drew upon such diverse sources as classical mythology, Byzantine mosaics, and Native American art. Dozens of her works in 16 states, from Nebraska to New York, engage hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. The authors have written The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière to lift her name out of obscurity.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Catherine Coleman Brawer is an art historian and curator. She is the author of Chinese Export Porcelain: The Elvehjem Museum of Art and The Studio Building and coauthor of Making Their Mark: Women Artists Move into the Mainstream, 1970–1985. She curated the exhibition Walls Speak: The Narrative Art of Hildreth Meière, which was shown in New York and Washington, D.C., and wrote the accompanying catalogue.

Kathleen Murphy Skolnik, an art and architectural historian, is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of History, Art History, and Philosophy at Roosevelt University in Chicago. She collaborated with Robert Bruegmann on The Architecture of Harry Weese and has contributed to the Chicago Architects Oral History Project of the Art Institute of Chicago. She is the editor of the Chicago Art Deco Society Magazine and has written and lectured extensively on Art Deco– related topics.

Since 2007, Hildreth Meière Dunn has photographed more than 40 sites and more than 150 artworks created by her grandmother, Hildreth Meière. Her photographs have appeared in newspapers and magazines, including in the New York Times, Washington Post, Stamford Magazine, Chicago Art Deco Society Magazine, and the Blue Guide New York, and in television news and documentary programs on Meière’s work.

Richard Guy Wilson holds the Commonwealth Professor’s Chair in Architectural History at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. He is the author or coauthor of sixteen books on American and modern architecture.

ABOUT ANDREA MONFRIED EDITIONS:

Andrea Monfried has directed over 200 illustrated books in her years at Rizzoli, Monacelli Press, as founding editor, and Random House. She founded Andrea Monfried Editions in 2012 to bring together her two-plus decades of editorial experience with her knowledge of production and marketing in the digital era. Her list includes works by exceptional artists, architects, photographers, and designers.

For further info: Contact, Lisa Dierbeck (917) 364-0755

"Olive Tree" A Poem by Danielle Moragne, SHP'13

Photos taken July 2013 during the Society of the Sacred Heart Spirituality Forum hosted at
Sacred Heart Schools ~ Atherton, Calf  near Oakwood, the RSCJ Retirement Community

Olive Tree

Some friendly souls

stretched out in a line before me.

I stepped to the side,

so that I could see every outline

of the olive trees.

The hint of metal on 

their leaves,

like the moon's silvery reflection

on the deep and dark lake waters,

differentiated

from the lush greens

I was used to.

The smooth covering of sky

peeking through the leaves

only added to my longing

to capture this individualism

in a jar

to try to save it for later.

I want to save the bird rehearsing on

the top branch,

the feeling of antiquity

and simple joy

as I step on the fallen olives.

I wanted to save it

for a dull day of inquiring beauty.

~ Danielle Moragne, SHP'13

Note:  Olive Harvest at Sacred Heart Schools - Over 50 heritage olive trees estimated to be more than 100 years old line the campus along its western border on Elena Avenue.  Since 2009, the School community has come together in early November to harvest the olives from the trees.  The fruit is then pressed into a premium olive oil, bottled and sold as a fundraiser.  Dr. Stewart Slafter oversees the organic management practices of the grove so that the trees produce healthy fruit in time for the harvest.  The education of learning how to manage the trees, produce a high quality olive oil, discover what makes an olive oil extra virgin and what factors affect its taste are all part of the lessons learned for both the students and adults to appreciate the entire process from tree to table.  

"Easter Sunday Resurrection", A Poem by Elizabeth Grantham, RSCJ

Easter Sunday

Resurrection

Tears and peace are one

Where you break through the walls that fear raised high
To touch the cowering self and bid come forth
Lazarus from the tomb, securely seated,
to recognize the Lord of life and love
And all of the wondrous openings
To freedom and to wholeness and to peace.
Joy grows and swells and fills the very earth
With tears of recognition:
"I am thou and thou art me"  and this is life
In all its tangled roots and thrusting stems,
Opening to flowers bearing fruit
That all may pluck and eat.
"This is my body, given for you."
"Drink of this cup, my outpoured life,
That you may live abundantly anew.
This is my gift; do as I do.
Be me, for I am with you
And life is yours."

Elizabeth Grantham, R.S.C.J.
Province of England - Wales

Inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, National Poetry Month is now held every April to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture.  If you have a favorite poem written by an alum or RSCJ that you would like to share, please send to AASH PAST PRESIDENT MER 

"Easter Reflection" A Poem by April O'Leary, RSCJ

Sacred Heart of Jesus Statue - Bloomfield Hills, MI

High on the clean and wind-washed hills
Christ in His beauty stands
And looks on the jewel He loves to hold
In His sheltering and nail-pierced hands

The rustling tree-tops softly stir
in whispering and hushed surprise
the flowers at His feet look up and see
their reflection in Love’s own eyes.

Lovely the wind in the pale smooth grass,
and the hills in their shadow filled folds,
and lovely the light on the tumbled clouds
that reflects on the jewel He holds.

Christ in His radiance walks the woods
and looks on His house with love
and the peace of his passing lingers long
in the wind smoothed hills above.

                                ---Poem written in 1949 by April O'Leary, RSCJ (1922-2013)

Province of England - Wales

Inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, National Poetry Month is now held every April to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture.  If you have a favorite poem written by an alum or RSCJ that you would like to share, please send to AASH PAST PRESIDENT MER

"Sixth Station" A Poem by Anna Mae Marheineke, RSCJ

Taken from the book "Smile the Sun Around My Heart"
The Collection of Poems of Anna Mae Marheineke, RSCJ.

Sixth Station

The dark has lifted

for a moment now,

and film of dirt and sweat,

blurring His eye focus

to make crazy patterns on the road,

he cleared.

Too cool clean cloth

feels sweet against His face -

He remembers His mother

had the same gentleness in her touch

when she had washed from Him

the grime a child's play made,

these many years ago,

and held a fresh white towel

close. This towel, too He sees 

is white.

The road no longer blurs

and rocks before His eyes.

He tries to smile a little 

across the pain that cracks His lips,

and hands the woman's kerchief

back to her.

His dark eyes look, then, into hers.

He leaves remembrance

of HIs gratitude indelible

upon her towel's whiteness, and carries

indelible upon His Heart

Veronica's gentle act of courtesy.

~   Anna Mae Marheineke, RSCJ

Note: Inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, National Poetry Month is now held every April to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture.  Today's blog post is a poem taken from the book "Smile the Sun Around My Heart" The Collection of Poems of Anna Mae Marheineke, RSCJ.  Sr. Marheineke (1917-2013) was a 1934 alumna of the Academy of Saint Charles.  If you wish to purchase a copy of Sr. Marheineke's collection of poems look under the heading on the right "Books by Sacred Heart Alum Authors" and click on the link to her book.

"Coast Live Oak" A Poem by Danielle Moragne, SHP'13

Photo taken July 2013 on the grounds of Sacred Heart Schools ~ Atherton, Calf
near Oakwood, the RSCJ Retirement Community

Coast Live Oak

A trunk
massive, contorted, and gnarled
splits and cuts its way into the sky,
demanding its place in the earth by spreading its roots.
Thick at first, then wean away,
like capillaries.

Though native only to the
Golden Coast,
the wide canopy,
dark leaves, and grand stature 
forge the confidence of a continent,
reminding us that we must respect
what we cannot change, and
that we must praise
that which is
greater
than we.

~ Danielle Moragne, SHP '13

The Conge - A Poem by Kate O' Flaherty Chopin

Kate O'Flaherty Chopin
Sacred Heart Alumna, St. Louis - Class of 1898

The Congé – 1867

The Congé is past and the frolic and fun

Was over, before it seemed scarcely begun;

For with playing and romping and teasing away,

The quick fleeting hours soon filled up the day.

But the morning was not to amusement devoted

For Madam to all of her “Brights” had allotted

The task (this displayed a heart ever trusting)

Of arranging and breaking and mending and dusting,

Her chemical tools, which of delicate make

We could easily handle and --- easily break.

There was Lizzie who thought with importance of air

That we could do nothing if she was not there,

And Frank --- thinking much, and speaking but little

Who handled with safety tools e’en the most brittle

While Katie O’F, poor unfortunate lass

Broke implements stoutest as though they were glass.

But this war of destruction, thanks, soon was to cease

And the room and its contents left happily in peace.

For kind Madam Hamilton, with due form and state,

Announced the dinner no longer could wait,

And arranging the girls with artistical taste,

Led the way to the hall without trouble or haste.

But ye Fates! On arriving I found ‘twas my doom

For what I presume of more benches or room,

To sit between Lizzie and Nina my cousin

Who seemed to have appetites due to a dozen,

And gave me scarce time to breathe or to think

With asking for butter --- the bread ---or a drink.

But between these demands which indeed were not few,

I found time to admire an arrangement or two

Of the garlands of flowers and pigs a la fry

Which in every direction were greeting the eye.

But all these howe’er beautiful sink into nought,

In considering the fun which the afternoon brought;

For through cellar and basement and garret so high,

We tumbled and tossed in the game of “I spy.”

Now into the barn yard --- the loft or the stable,

Hiding in every place ---any place that we were able;

And thrown into ecstasies of foolish delight

At not being found or at seeking aright.

But at length Madam M. with mysterious air,

Comes whispering that the girls must prepare

To enter a room, shut out from all light,

To see a strange thing ___ a most wonderful sight;

Which sight we soon found was a new source of pleasure

Got up by “our Madam” whose mind is a treasure,

Ever teeming with jewels of science and fun,

And in whom we all think sets and rises the sun.

‘Twas a strange magic lantern which displayed a queer sight

Of devils in every conceivable plight.

Of hills and volcanoes; St. Peter’s at Rome;

Of Pantheons at Paris --- or a neat cottage home.

Of monkies and tigers and elephants rare ---

All displayed with precision and mentioned with care.

When, at the best part we are told we must leave;

For fear that the already fast fading light

Would leave us in fear at the coming of night.

And as I reluctantly arose to obey,

Though my reason said “homeward” my heard bade me stay.

So greatly put out --- nearly ready to cry,

I kissed my companions --- bade Madam good bye ---

And secretly knowing I’d no time to waste

Turned my steps towards home with all possible haste.

                                                      Written in 1867 By Kate O’Flaherty

Crow Song by Zoe Keithley

Zoe Marhoefer Keithely, attended Sacred Heart Lake Forest (1947-1951)

The little child's bones

inside me rattle and cavort,

play music when I walk.

The eros of the great engine

is their familiar; and how,

never sleeping, it draws

the juice along to force it

through the many narrows.

Again the ancient seeds

sprout in the collar of silt.

Oh, I am the holy child dancing

on the rim of the earth.

Forever is my name.

Poem by Zoe Keithley taken from Crow Song, Roan Press, 2009 

For further info on Zoe Keithley and her upcoming Roots Writer Series & Workshop on April 26, 2014 in Chicago, IL ~ click here. 

A poem by Louise Imogen Guiney - "John Brown: A Paradox"

Louise Imogen Guiney
(1861-1920)
Alumna of Sacred Heart 

John Brown: A Paradox

BY LOUISE IMOGEN GUINEY

Compassionate eyes had our brave John Brown,

And a craggy stern forehead, a militant frown;

He, the storm-bow of peace. Give him volley on volley,

The fool who redeemed us once of our folly,

And the smiter that healed us, our right John Brown!

Too vehement, verily, was John Brown!

For waiting is statesmanlike; his the renown

Of the holy rash arm, the equipper and starter

Of freedmen; aye, call him fanatic and martyr:

He can carry both halos, our plain John Brown.

A scandalous stumbling-block was John Brown,

And a jeer; but ah! soon from the terrified town,

In his bleeding track made over hilltop and hollow,

Wise armies and councils were eager to follow,

And the children’s lips chanted our lost John Brown.

Star-led for us, stumbled and groped John Brown,

Star-led, in the awful morasses to drown;

And the trumpet that rang for a nation’s upheaval,

From the thought that was just, thro’ the deed that was evil,

Was blown with the breath of this dumb John Brown!

Bared heads and a pledge unto mad John Brown!

Now the curse is allayed, now the dragon is down,

Now we see, clear enough, looking back at the onset,

Christianity’s flood-tide and Chivalry’s sunset

In the old broken heart of our hanged John Brown!

Source: She Wields a Pen: American Women Poets of the Nineteenth Century (University of Iowa Press, 1997)

Trees - A poem by April O'Leary, RSCJ

Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum)
Sacred Heart Schools Atherton Campus

Trees have a way
of teaching us the deepest things.
Seasonally, quietly, they demonstrate their truths.

You must endure,
(trees say) bow down, give way, accept
when from the North ice-laden winds oppress.

You must release
what you with year-long love watched slowly grow,
when at the summer's end green leaves turn sere.

The darkest times
these are, watching your hope's fulfilment drift away,
when all the best you strove for, you renounce.

- But then, trees say,
think of that rare delight when buds, in Spring, define
on desiccated boughs their glory once again.

Written in 1968 by April O'Leary , RSCJ (1922-2013)

Province of England - Wales

Celebrating National Poetry Month with Favorite Poems Authored by Sacred Heart Alums and RSCJ

In 1996 the Academy of American Poets inaugarated April as National Poetry Month.  So throughout this month I will showcase poetry authored by Sacred Heart alums and RSCJ.  To start off the month, I have selected a well known poem that was written by Mother Stuart.  This year we celebrate the Centenary of Janet Erskine Stuart 's death through October 21, 2014.  Click here for further info.

SONG OF THE SWAN

Spirit seeking light and beauty,
   Heart that longest for thy rest,
Soul that askest understanding,
   Only thus can ye be blest.

All the joy and all the fairness
   Fade away from earth's delight
By the steadfast contemplation
   Of the glory out of sight.

Through the vastness of creation
   Though your restless thought may roam,
God is all that you can long for,
   God is all His creature's home.

Taste and see Him, feel and hear Him,
   Hope and clasp His unseen hand.
Though the darkness seem to hide Him
   Faith and love can understand.

God, who loves all Thy creatures,
   All our hearts are known to Thee,
Lead us through the land of shadows
   To They blest eternity!

 Written by Janet Erskine Stuart, RSCJ

Sixth Superior General of the Society of the Sacred Heart (1857 -1914)

The above poem was taken from the book The Fable of the Ugly Duckling from Highways and By-Ways in the Spiritual Life by Janet Erskine Stuart (Longmans, Green and Co. London 1923)