Beautiful morning today, down here on the farm, although a fleeting recollection of the old saying, “Red sky in the morning, shepherd’s warning,” did run through my mind. (True to form, the rain starts tonight.)
But my first thought took me back to my high-school days, and the first time I read The Odyssey end-to-end in my “Humanities” class, an introduction to the great works of Western Civilization, all the way from The Epic of Gilgamesh to William James.
But when early-born rosy-fingered Dawn appeared…
The formula, repeated almost two-dozen times throughout the story reminds us that, no matter the experiences of our last twenty-four hours–joy, sorrow, love, hatred, gratitude, vengeance, tragedy, comedy–and if we will it, all can be washed clean with the next rising of the sun.
And we can start anew.
It’s particularly beautiful in Greek too. Phonetically it’s pronounced “Rhododactylos eos”. I’ll spare you the Greek characters but it’s one of those instances that beautifully illustrates how certain translators really do work to represent the beauty and rhythm of the original language. So very good and memorable.
PS. Loving your posts as usual.
One of the many wonderful things I find here is how quiet, scholarly, and thoughtful your blog is. Refreshing to know so many of us come here to read, think, and enjoy quietly. It’s rare I comment but I always read and share your work and know so many others who do as well. It’s blissfully free of the pot-stirring vanities so easily discovered in such places.
So much good here. Much gratitude.
Thanks so much. And for the book. Very enjoyable.
Happy to provide something for you to read, as you’ve given us all so much good of your own. Delighted you enjoyed it.