"hyacinths to feed thy soul" - Democratic Underground

niyad

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Sun Nov-01-09 11:49 AM
Original message

"hyacinths to feed thy soul"

Edited on Sun Nov-01-09 11:50 AM by niyad

this quatrain is from the rubaiyat of omar khayyam, and I have been using it for years to keep me in what passes for my sanity

If of thy mortal goods thou art bereft,

and from thy slender store

Two loaves alone to thee are left,

Sell one, and with the dole

Buy Hyacinths to feed thy Soul.

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Tuesday Afternoon

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Sun Nov-01-09 11:56 AM
Response to Original message

1. for man can not live by bread alone.

Edited on Sun Nov-01-09 11:58 AM by Tuesday Afternoon

beauty is a reason unto itself.

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Voice for Peace

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Sun Nov-01-09 12:05 PM
Response to Reply #1

2. not to mention that pleasure is nourishing for the body

feeds those cells with happy energy

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Are_grits_groceries

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Sun Nov-01-09 12:11 PM
Response to Original message

3. That is one of my favorites.

My hyacinths are books.

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ProleNoMore

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Sun Nov-01-09 12:35 PM
Response to Reply #3

4. Yes - Reading - Such A Simple And Fulfilling Pleasure

eom

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Brickbat

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Sun Nov-01-09 12:38 PM
Response to Original message

5. Bread and roses.

Our lives shall not be sweated from birth until life closes;
Hearts starve as well as bodies; bread and roses, bread and roses.

-- James Oppenheim

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bain_sidhe

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Sun Nov-01-09 01:34 PM
Response to Original message

6. Love the poem, but I thought it was Saadi...?

Whoever wrote it, it's been a favorite of mine for years.

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niyad

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Sun Nov-01-09 11:07 PM
Response to Reply #6

13. when this piece was first related to me, I was told it was from the "rubaiyat", but I just read

the whole thing, and you are quite correct. thank you for the information.

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aquart

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Sun Nov-01-09 01:39 PM
Response to Original message

7. I still have little gray cards printed with that.

My sister had it written on her wall at Pratt. When she opened her store, which specialized in handmade American crafts, she named it Hyacinth. It flourished for 20 twenty years in Bayside, NY.

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JaneQPublic

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Sun Nov-01-09 01:47 PM
Response to Original message

8. If you're a fan of BBC's "Keeping Up Appearances"...

...then Hyacinth would feed your soul at one of her "Candlelight Suppers," or perhaps at a riverside luncheon complete with "riparian entertainments" and "al fresco munchettes."

:rofl:

Sorry, couldn't help goofing on the "Hyacinth" reference.

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Sal Minella

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Sun Nov-01-09 02:29 PM
Response to Reply #8

9. The sight of her going end-over-applecart over the side of the boat

is a scene one does not soon forget, does one. Nor will I soon forget the sight of the entire crew trekking up and down the riverbank with the accoutrements for the riparian entertainments. I do believe she left her mo-bile at home on this occasion?

Wait -- was Hyacinth going over the side of the boat in the episode with the Admiral (who just couldn't keep his hands off her).

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niyad

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Sun Nov-01-09 03:22 PM
Response to Reply #9

11. think I missed the admiral episode--however, with my pbs station running it right now

I should be able to catch it this time around.

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niyad

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Sun Nov-01-09 03:21 PM
Response to Reply #8

10. absolutely adore that show--my pbs station just started another run of it two weeks ago.

so I catch as many episodes as I can.

and thanks for the riff on dear hyacinth.

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niyad

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Sun Nov-01-09 07:01 PM
Response to Original message

12. kick

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ohheckyeah

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Sun Nov-01-09 11:11 PM
Response to Original message

14. That was my grandmother's favorite.

Although the version she had was Americanized I guess:

If your fortune be bereft
and in your cupboard but two loaves.
Sell one loaf and with the gold
buy Hyacinths to feed the soul.

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niyad

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Mon Nov-02-09 12:53 AM
Response to Original message

15. wow--somebody un'rec'd this.

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Hekate

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Mon Nov-02-09 03:00 AM
Response to Original message

16. I've always loved that little poem. How we need beauty in our lives....

KnR

Hekate

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niyad

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Mon Nov-02-09 12:20 PM
Response to Reply #16

17. indeed we do, and it can be found in the simplest things--or the grandest.

I see the sunrise, or the crystalline clarity of snow-covered peaks, my roses blooming in winter--my furbaby, a smile from a stranger-- and my day is truly blessed.

BB

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