“Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers.” (Lord Alfred Tennyson) ALT is considered to be one of the greatest poets of Victorian England. At age 12, he wrote a 6000 line epic poem. When I was 12, I had other things on my mind besides writing poetry. Of course, I never was named a Lord, either. He’s famous for writing Ulysses, but I like his “Flower in the Crannied Wall” the best. Grandson John is graduating from high school this Sunday, and today’s “knowledge” quote is in honor of the occasion. ;-) Jack
FLOWER IN THE CRANNIED WALL By Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–1892)
Flower in the crannied wall,
I pluck you out of the crannies;—
Hold you here, root and all, in my hand,
Little flower—but if I could understand
What you are, root and all, and all in all,
I should know what God and man is.
FROM MF IN MICHIGAN: Congratulations proud Grandpa. BTW, my favorite is The Eagle. FROM JACK: The eagle is a magnificent bird. Grandchildren are magnificent--er than that.
THE EAGLE - Tennyson
He clasps the crag with crooked hands;
Close to the sun in lonely lands,
Ring’d with the azure world, he stands.
The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls;
He watches from his mountain walls,
And like a thunderbolt he falls.
FROM GOOD DEBT JON: Jack congratulations to you and your grandson. As you and ALT say, the learning comes and is ongoing—the hard part sometimes is operating that which you have learned along the guidelines in Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Living this verse has been harder than any advanced degree I have ever obtained. This verse is universal, as my friend Paul Reece says it works in any language and with any religion. Have a great day. FROM JACK: I was at a Coalition committee meeting this morning and learned something. Lessons are out there, if we are just tuned in.
FROM PO IN MICHIGAN: I'm not familiar with that poem, but the title alone will make me check it out! FROM JACK: I know you'll like it when you read it. It's on the blog.
FROM SH IN MICHIGAN: The word that grabbed me was "lingers" so looked up in the dictionary. Among all the possibilities the one that was the most appealing is "to remain, last or continue for a long time or after the EXPECTED time". Congratulations to your grandson, John, and to all the other graduates out there!!!!! FROM JACK: The Cranberries recorded a song called, Linger.
FROM SF IN MICHIGAN: Mazel tov! FROM JACK: (For my non-Jewish friends, see below....)
Although mazel tov literally translates to "good luck", the phrase is not used in the way that the expression "good luck" is used in English (typically as "I wish you good luck"). It rather means "good luck has occurred" or "your fortune has been good" and is an acknowledgement of this. The phrase "mazel tov!" parallels the use of the phrase "congratulations!" and conveys roughly that "I am pleased this good thing has happened to you!".The phrase for wishing good luck to occur in Hebrew, in the way "good luck" does in English, is b'hatzlacha
FROM LIZ IN ILLINOIS: Congrats to Grandson John! Congrats to you for not saying, "graduating high school," as so many people seem to say these days... even on tv! That and "went missing" are becoming increasing prevalent and annoying. FROM JACK: Of course I wouldn't use those words. I graduated Moline High School, although when I don't show up for this year's anniversary, I will probably be marked, as "went missing."
FROM MOLINER CF: Congratulations to Grandson John. I hope he has a more positive attitude than you do. FROM JACK: That's a negative thought. At least he carries the name with pride.
FROM MO IN ILLINOIS: I have a quote on my refrigerator from Lord Tennyson that I received on a Sympathy card when my twin sister died. "Although much is taken, much abides." It kind of put things in perspective for me at the time, because I do have a wonderful, attentive family and friends for which to be thankful! Imagine writing an epic poem when one is 12!! I'm sure we've all tried our hand at poetry, and written parodies of song, etc.But have not invested the time it would take to be really good at it! FROM JACK: I really like that quote sent to you when Jan died. Her life was a great one.
1 comment:
The word that grabbed me was "lingers" so looked up in the dictionary. Among all the possibilities the one that was the most appealing is "to remain, last or continue for a long time or after the EXPECTED time". Congratulations to your grandson, John, and to all the other graduates out there!!!!!
S.H. in MI
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