Ebenezer Elliott, "Air, Light, Food, Life"1.
Tax'd Light is poison'd air;
And lords and squires tax Light;
The smile of God, the breath of life,
They curse, with all their might!
They curse the blessed sod;
They, kneel to curse and pray;
They famish, in the name of God,
His children day by day:
Light, Air, and Food, they tax;
Could hell's worst fiends do worse?
Man's all on earth, Light, Air, Food, Life,
With all their might, they curse!
Then, who would play the lord
O'er wapentake and shire?
To make such law, the Dev'l himself
Would scorn to be a Squire.
2.
But sin comes home to roost;
And right too long delay'd
May match, for them, their wretches' home,
The hell on earth they've made:
To beg the bread they curse;
To find in want a hell;
To perish like their victims, starv'd;
May yet requite them well.
" Lord, do thou unto us
As we to others do! "
Such pray'r, from spotted lips, like theirs,
Might turn their angels blue!
Then, who would play the lord
O'er wapentake and shire?
To curse, by law, Light, Air, and Life,
What beast would be a Squire?
Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Food for Heartbeats
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13 comments:
Did you happen to see The Who concert from Hyde Park on TV?
I watched a bit of it.
Also caught a bit of U2 from Paris.
Are you gearing up for Christmas, FJ? What are you asking Santa for?
(new cd's? books?)
No, I didn't see it. I love The Who... probably my favorite group back in the 70's. I used to listen to the "Who's Next" album & Barbara O'Reilly to pump myself up before football games..
And no, I haven't had a chance to get started on Christmas. I'm super busy ar work trying to replan the mission I've been supporting for the past three years. Our satellite integrator was bought out by a foreign company and lost their security clearances, so we're looking to catch a ride on a DOD satellite. Unfortunately, it lauches six months earlier than we'd been planning on, so we're trying to speed things up.
What do I want from Santa? Not having to work over the holidays (unlikely). And no, there's little that I want other than the company of friends and family, and some intellectually stimulating exchanges on the internet. :)
I knew The Who was one of your favorites. :-)
I would listen to Queen and Survivor before my events at track meets. That was a lifetime ago!
Sounds like things are really intense at work. Sorry to hear that you'll likely be working over the holiday. That stinks. My husband is doing mandatory overtime at the moment, and it's tough. Nothing quite like having to stick to a schedule that you didn't create. :p
Let me know if you come across any intellectually stimulating exchanges on the internet. ;-)
Let me know if you come across any intellectually stimulating exchanges on the internet.
I'm just waiting for your next blog post! ;)
But you're right, they do seem farther and fewer between. I miss NG's presence, and ducky seems so serious lately. And of course, nicrap doesn't allow comments at his blog.... :(
I'm just waiting for your next blog post! ;)
You really are hard up, if that's the case!
:-)
I know, boo on nicrap for not allowing comments. :D
But to be honest, my infrequent blogging is an indication that my life is in order. I am so much more present with my family than I was several years ago.
I know that our (me, you, nicrap) conversations are less frequent now, but I think they're more meaningful and personal.
I agree, they are certainly both, but sometimes I miss the tumultuous times. I learned a lot during them from the both of you, and I owe you both a debt of thanks for listening and providing feedback during that period. I had a lot of anger and rage which has since dissapated, so perhaps now I don't need to vent as much (a good thing). You calmed me down and kept me relatively sane.
I myself was going through a particularly bad break up then, but that was just a fallout of the life I was living compared to which the breakup was nothing ... I lived in a moral wasteland (as a very good friend of mine once put it), with its harvest of lies and illusions ... You say you learned from me, but I had nothing good to offer you, all my ideas were up in the air, there was nothing I knew then that was of any value to anyone, least of all to myself, I was struggling just as you were ... perhaps we were all, desperately trying to keep our heads above water, clutching at every straw that came to hand, perhaps that's what we were to each other then, straws, we may not have pulled each other up, but then we also didn't drag each other down, in other words, we kept each other floating for a while, perhaps all we needed at the time ... and, by Jove, am I thankful for it! :)
Nicrap said it perfectly.
(I wanted to say more but I haven't had my coffee yet and the words aren't coming easily.)
Maybe all it takes is somebody to listen, and give feedback, even if its'not all positive. Just a presence... not a "big Other"... but not just a third-party busybody. Maybe this explains how "group" therapy works.
....says the in-house psychologist. ;) :p
I think it's a big reason why group therapy works.
and nicrap is a dedicated member of this group! ;-)
but what i wanted to say earlier was...
i've often wondered why those years were so awful.
it seemed like a perfect storm.
how odd that we were all struggling with different issues
yet somehow found common ground.
still, it was...wretched at times.
if I'm being HONEST. ;-)
really, there were times i didn't know if i'd make it back.
i'm not trying to be morose, just looking back on it.
but yes, i am thankful for what i've learned, and the friendships i've found with y'all.
fj, it's really been so good to get to know you a little better. i'm glad you're not so angry anymore. :-)
Ditto. :)
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