Beauty always has been a source of Joy for me. Beauty in Nature, in Art, in Words and Literature, in Music, in contemplation of God and in living creatures... all of these can trigger an opening of emotional floodgates that bring ecstacy to my spirit. There is a sense of renewed faith in the Universe, however fleeting.
In terms of a purely physical joy, that sense of total freedom from pain or any constraints, I always found this in Carousels. Riding a painted horse, reaching for a gold ring, listening to that tinkling music that reminded one of music boxes and ice cream... it transported me to a place where I had no emotional scars, no fears, no burdens. I am an individual who connects with symbols and the carousel holds so many powerful symbols for me. The eternal circle is the most obvious, both in the movement of the carousel itself and in the gold ring.
I loved the sensation of movement, the wind blowing through my hair, and yet, I loved it more on a painted horse than a real one... partly this is because it is the place my father loved to take me, a place where magic ruled. The horse was very real to me. I gave her a name and whispered in her ear each time I saw her, gave her my affection and my dreams. Even when I became older, I still had a residual belief in the magic of the Carousel.
The horse shown above was one of two horses of mine. It all depended on two separate considerations: whether my horse and the Sea Monster behind it were free or not, as my sister always wanted to ride the Sea Monster. Her other animal was the Lion behind my white horse.
This truly is one of the most magnificent carousels I have known... and it is the carousel of my childhood and throughout my youth, even my early 20s.
Although the horses and other animals that went up and down on their golden poles were beautiful, one could not try for the gold ring from an inside 'post'. It was only when we rode on the outside that we could catch any of the rings.
We seldom missed. We never were given pocket money so our chances for a second ride were based on our ability to catch the gold ring. Quite a large number of iron rings were loaded into the arm that extended out towards the riders... Whether the operator loaded one or two gold rings depended on how many horses were occupied by riders.
One wonderful summer, there was a really cute young guy operating the carousel and he ALWAYS loaded two gold rings for us, irrespective of the number of other riders on the outside. We rode again and again when that happened, because we never missed and there were rings for both of us.
When I was very young, no more than 6 or 7, I read a series of books about a carousel horse and her adventures. I borrowed them from the public library in the town where my stepfather's parents lived and where we spent our summers. I loved those books and yet I never have been able to find them as an adult. No one else is familiar with them. I have done various searches and never been able to find them. I recall that the horse's name was Gigi. That is all... no author's name. I believe there were four books in the series.
This did not create my love of Carousels but it certainly strengthened it. I think, apart from the magic itself and the beauty, the flash of light on the brass poles, the dizziness when one looks too closely and too long at the landscape flying by, there was a feeling of safety I never experienced anywhere else. The horse was bound on a journey but it was one where the end was the beginning forever and ever.
They have used carousels in famous films, but usually in a negative context, in some sort of chase scene that involves criminals or a stalking scene that involves a intent to murder... In a few films, lovers ride a carousel, and I do not particularly resonate to that either. For me, it is the symbol of innocence, of joy that has no conditions nor limitations.
When my daughter was born, one of the first outings was to a Park with an antique carousel. I had her in a little sling and she was less than a month old when I took her on her first carousel ride and, although it may be a little disturbing to contemplate, I reached for the gold ring and caught it! She was kind of an amazing baby who seldom cried... she certainly appeared to enjoy the ride and in all honesty, there was no way that she could have flown out of the sling to join all of the discarded iron rings.
1 comment:
Are some things better left as a mystery or not?
If not, the book you were looking for might be "Gigi: The Story of a Merry-Go-Round Horse" by Elizabeth Foster.
I hope this is helpful.
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