TONGUES IN BOOKS…..
I have never sought to be like someone else. I have celebrated who I am and it has sometimes been construed as arrogance. I believe we all have a basic nature that is made of the four humours which are not in balance, but in certain proportions that decides whether we are sanguine, choleric, bilious, phlegmatic or subtle combinations of these in particular and various situations.
Equanimity is what I have sought in life so that at times through the struggles and strife that often times visit me, I have endeavoured to be in a state of peace. I have tried to keep the still centre even as the whirlpool around threatens destruction. The other big philosophy that has kept me intact is the wisdom of ‘This too shall pass’ – so that neither joy nor sorrow throws me into a state of intoxication or despair.
Sharing favourite pieces from my collection of Literature of Reflection. They have always given me solace and strength in times of anger and distress. They instill a calm, a wisdom, a spirit and courage that is inspiring.
There is heredity, and then there is learning. Learning must go on, on an ongoing basis. A steep curve sometimes, a gentle one at others, but I strive to make sure that the climb is with joy because I have decided that it should be joyous.
‘If’ by Rudyard Kipling
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
‘ Or walk with Kings – nor lose the common touch,
if neither foes nor loving friends hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And – which is more – you’ll be a Man, my son!
‘Desiderata’ by Max Erhmann
Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.
Letter to his son’s Teacher by Abraham Lincoln
In school, teach him it is far more honorable to fall than to cheat…..
Teach to have faith in his own ideas, even if everyone tells him he is wrong.
Teach him to be gentle with gentle people and tough with the tough.
Try to give my son the strength not to follow the crowd when everyone getting on the bandwagon…
Infinite Gyres 