60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey: Weathering by Fleur Adcock.

<p>Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is 60 Seconds, your daily dose of hope, imagination, wisdom, stories, practical tips, and general riffing on this and that.</p><p>Here, in my home on Whidbey Island I believe I know well what prompted <a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/fleur-adcock">Fleur Adcock</a> to write the poem, Weathering.</p><p><strong>Weathering</strong></p><p> <i>  Literally thin-skinned, I suppose, my face</i></p><p><i>   catches the wind off the snow-line and flushes</i></p><p><i>   with a flush that will never wholly settle. Well:</i></p><p><i>   that was a metropolitan vanity,</i></p><p><i>   wanting to look young for ever, to pass.</i></p><p> </p><p><i>   I was never a pre-Raphaelite beauty</i></p><p><i>   nor anything but pretty enough to satisfy</i></p><p><i>   men who needed to be seen with passable women.</i></p><p><i>   But now that I am in love with a place</i></p><p><i>   which doesn’t care how I look, or if I’m happy,</i></p><p> </p><p><i>   happy is how I look, and that’s all.</i></p><p><i>   My hair will turn grey in any case,</i></p><p><i>   my nails chip and flake, my waist thicken,</i></p><p><i>   and the years work all their usual changes.</i></p><p><i>   If my face is to be weather-beaten as well</i></p><p> </p><p><i>   that’s little enough lost, a fair bargain</i></p><p><i>   for a year among lakes and fells, when simply</i></p><p><i>   to look out of my window at the high pass</i></p><p><i>   makes me indifferent to mirrors and to what</i></p><p><i>   my soul may wear over its new complexion</i>." [Fleur Adcock]</p><p> </p><p><i>This is the place to thrive together. Come for the stories - stay for the magic.  <strong>Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, follow, share a nice shout out on your social media or podcast channel of choice, and join us next time! </strong>You’re invited to stop by the website and subscribe to stay current with Diane, her journeys, her guests, as well as creativity, imagination, walking, stories, camaraderie, and so