A quiet notice V2Melody closes at midnight on , Spanish time.

Closes

A note from Richard

V2Melody will close at midnight on 20 January 2028

This site has been a retirement project in musical poetry: poems chosen with care and set to music, offered freely for as long as it felt right to keep the garden open.

The work no longer holds the place it once did in my life. I have gone as far with it as I wish to go. Like a sand mandala, it was made to be completed and then released. I am not attached to its permanence, and I do not believe any of it needs to last beyond the time it was given. The poems were already here before I arrived and began to experiment with them. They will still be here when these musical experiments, and indeed myself, have been swept away, like the sand of a mandala. Nothing has been lost.

I want a simpler end to my life, days of simple love and enjoyment with my wonderful wife of 20 years. The work of maintaining a server, the monitoring, and the residual obligations that come with keeping a site alive no longer fit that life.

From 4 November 2026 I will not be adding new poems or musical poems to the site.

The experimental music I am making now is on my Suno profile. Those pieces stay there, and are not added to this site.

Until midnight on 20 January 2028, Spanish time, everything remains available exactly as it is. That is when my VPS server contract comes to an end, and it will not be renewed. After that, the server will be switched off and the site will disappear.

The Mandala Is Finished explains this more fully.

Thank you to anyone who found a poem, a track, or a quiet moment here.

The pleasure was in the making.

Richard

Home › Glossary › Letter C

Croises

Archaic Terms
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

"Croises" refers to the term "crusaders," specifically those who participated in the Crusades, the military campaigns in the medieval period aimed at reclaiming the Holy Land.

Detailed Definition
The term "Croises" is derived from the French word for "crusaders," referring to the warriors who took part in the Crusades, a series of religious wars sanctioned by the Latin Church during the medieval period. In the context of Sir Aubrey de Vere's poem "The Children Band," the term evokes the image of innocent youth who, like the historical crusaders, ventured forth with noble intentions, embodying purity and a desire for redemption. The use of "Croises" highlights the contrast between the idealism of childhood and the harsh realities of life, as the poem reflects on the sacrifices made by these young souls.
Example
Example in poetry:
In the poem "The Children Band," de Vere writes, "And was the sod / Of Palestine by infant Croises trod?" Here, "Croises" symbolizes the young crusaders, suggesting that even the innocent and pure-hearted children were drawn into the grand, yet tragic, narrative of the Crusades, emphasizing their bravery and the poignant loss of innocence.
Additional Notes
The term "Croises" has its roots in the Latin "crux," meaning "cross," which symbolizes the Christian faith and the cause for which the crusaders fought. Historically, the Crusades spanned from the late 11th to the late 13th centuries, and the term is often associated with themes of faith, sacrifice, and the complexities of religious conflict. Related terms include "Crusade" and "Crusader," which are more commonly used today. When using "Croises," it is important to consider its historical context and the emotional weight it carries, particularly in discussions of innocence and sacrifice in literature.
Also Known As
Crusaders Cross-bearers Crossed Knights Holy Warriors
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