Child in the womb,
Or saint on a tomb –
Which way shall I lie
To fall asleep?
The keen moon stares
From the back of the sky,
The clouds are all home
Like driven sheep.
Bright drops of time,
One and two chime,
I turn and lie straight
With folded hands;
Convent-child, Pope,
They chose this state,
And their minds are wiped calm
As sea-levelled sands.
So my thoughts are:
But sleep stays as far,
Till I crouch on one side
Like a foetus again –
For sleeping, like death,
Must be won without pride,
With a nod from nature,
With a lack of strain,
And a loss of stature.
I’ve been meaning for years to create a Quotes page on my blog, and I did it today, in the course of helping a friend with her own blog pages. Then it was easy to start randomly loading content from my vast treasure store of worthy lines.
I always think of good succinct quotes as miniature philosophy exercises that beg me to muse on the statement as to its possible meanings and truthfulness and ramifications. The following is a good example of a pithy thought, and it also illustrates why I appreciate the quotes I collect:
Chamfort
A man is not necessarily intelligent because he has plenty of ideas, anymore than he is a good general because he has plenty of soldiers. ~Sebastien Chamfort
I am not a good general in this sense, but I think I know a capable soldier when I see one. Eventually I hope to put some order into the ranks of my army of quotes, of which only a small company have been assembled so far. In the meantime, anytime you want to mill about and look them over, you can click on the Quotes tab above.
If it’s evening where you are, you might especially like this one I just rediscovered and will close with:
Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones; and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. God is awake. ~Victor Hugo
Gladsome Lights 