General News
11 November, 2025
Unforgettable and simple pleasures: Celebrating the joys of life with Brian Lennen
Maryborough's Brian Lennen reflects on the simple things.
I have been fortunate in my lifetime to view some of the world’s masterpieces.
Visiting the Louvre in Paris, I, like everyone else, looked forward to seeing Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Mona Lisa’. It’s status is overwhelming although one is surprised at how small it is.
Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel and his statue of David in Florence are breathtaking, as long as you can queue for hours.
Gustave Eiffel’s namesake tower dominates the Parisian landscape, as does the Statue of Liberty on New York’s Staten Island.
Despite the above-mentioned, it was a musical composition and its performers that overwhelmed me.
The theme for the 1992 Barcelona Olympics “Amigos Para Siempre” (Friends for Life) performed by Sarah Brightman and José Carreras tops the bill. No matter how many times I hear it I am filled with emotion.
Forgetting these “man-made marvels”, it is the simple things that provide everyday delight.
This morning I was woken to a thrush in full song simply for the joy of it.
I watched in envy as a group of swallows delighted in their gift of flight.
They ducked and weaved, swooped and glided perilously close to colliding but came out unscathed.
Forgetting man’s engineering and artistic works, I am going to concentrate on the simple things.
When overseas, hearing Waltzing Matilda or the voice of another Australian, is highly emotional.
In the farmyard a brooding hen sitting atop a ready-to-hatch clutch of eggs, or a mother duck being followed in line by her brood of ducklings.
Your tabby cat purring at your feet or your faithful pooch snuggling against your legs.
In the horse and cart days the clip clopof the cart horse on a cobbled road.
The warm feeling of watching the cobbler or the blacksmith plying their trade, or sitting in the barber’s chair as they titillate your scalp with comb and scissors, you enter into a state between consciousness and sleep.
Swans wandering imperiously across the road oblivious to any danger.
Snuggled up under the eiderdown as a parent tells a story, or dozing off as the rain patters gently on the iron roof. The smell of fresh rain on the bitumen roads as the steam rises.
Reaching the home drive-way after a long trip.
A fashionable garment that fits you so perfectly that you can’t keep away from the mirror.
Pleasing your parents and family.
A compliment from a mentor.
Working through a difficult task until completed.
Reading a classic novel.
Becoming familiar with the works of Banjo Paterson, Henry Lawson and CJ Dennis.
Compliment others whenever possible.
Having a “fair dinkum” go.
Saying “thanks!” Letting people know that you appreciate them.
Hearing from a long-lost friend.
With the head set on listening to your favourite music — Nat King Cole heads the list of my favourites.
Strolling down Alma Street I was overwhelmed by the delightful smell of fresh bread baking.
The smell of fresh coffee bubbling in the percolator, freshly toasted bread in front of the open fire or bacon sizzling in the pan.
The simple celebration of a new day.
Most of all, looking forward to being with friends and family.
To conclude we have been treated to a “super beaver moon” — viewed at midnight, it dominated the night sky.