Lay for the Day 29th May

On this day in 1919 a solar eclipse was observed and photographed from the west African island of Principe, just north of the equator, by the British astrophysicist Thomas Eddington. The results showed that the stars in the sky around the sun – which are only visible in a total eclipse – appeared to have shifted their positions, as a result of their light being bent by the gravitational field of the sun. This was the first confirmation of Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity.

Today is also the anniversary of other turning points in time. On 29th May 1483, Constantinople fell to the Turks under Mahmet II, bringing the Byzantine Empire – itself the last remaining portion of the Roman Empire – to an end. On 29th May 1660, Charles II was restored to the throne of England, bringing to an end the period of the Commonwealth. On 29th May 1913, the first performance of Stravinsky’s ballet The Rite of Spring resulted in a riot, or what passes for one in the sedate atmosphere of the concert hall – a seminal moment for Modernism. And on 29th May 1953, men stood for the first time on the summit of Mount Everest.

Turn

Time
Takes a turn
From the dark
To the sunshine
In the night,
In a space
Full of bright stars.

Never no end to the day,
Never no end to the light,
Never no end to the way,
Leading us on out of sight

To a place
Far away
From our birth-land,
Where our souls
Long ago
Had their first home.

Never no end to the love,
Never no end to the peace,
Never no rest for the dove
Until her enemies cease

Making war
With their tongues
That are fiery
And their eyes
Fill with tears
For forgiveness.

Never no end to the song
Once it begins in your heart,
Once we are where we belong,
Once we are where we can start

To undo
All the wrong
And rebuild earth,
Beauteous earth.
Come along
While there’s still time.

Never no end to the day,
Never no end to the light,
Never no end to the way
Leading us on out of sight.

Words and music by The Children

 

The Lay Reader: an archive of the poetic calendar