I'm Not Alone

I'm not alone, though others go,

A different way from what I chose;

I'm not alone, though I say "No!"

I know that I will never lose.

I'm not alone though others tease

And urge that I should go their way;

I'm not alone though I displease

My friends by what I'll never say.

I'm not alone, for I now choose-

Though other folks may call me odd,

Tho' now it seems that I might lose-

To go the way that Jesus trod.

                                                 L. E. Dunkin

The Ant and the Cricket

"Go to the ant, O sluggard,

Observe its ways and be wise,

Which, having no chief,

Officer or ruler,

Prepares her food in the summer

And gathers her provision in the harvest.

How long will you lie down, O sluggard?

When will you arise from your sleep?

'A little sleep, a little slumber, 

A little folding of the hands to rest'-

Your poverty will come in like a vagabond

And your need like an armed man."

— Proverbs 6:6-11

    

A silly young cricket, accustomed to sing

Through the warm, sunny months of gay summer and spring, 

Began to complain, when he found that at home 

His cupboard was empty and winter was come.

Not a crumb to be found 

On the snow-covered ground;

Not a flower could he see,

Not a leaf on a tree.

"Oh, what will become,"says the cricket, "of me?"

At last by starvation and famine made bold,

All dripping with wet and all trembling with cold,

Away he set off to a miserly ant

To see if, to keep him alive, he would grant 

him shelter from rain.

A mouthful of grain 

He wished only to borrow,

He'd repay it to-morrow;

If not helped he must die of starvation and sorrow.

Says the ant to the cricket: "I'm your servant and friend,

But we ants never borrow, we ants never lend.

Pray tell me, dear sir, did you lay nothing by

When the weather was warm?" Said the cricket,

"Not I.

My heart was so light

That I sang day ad night,

For all nature looked gay,"

"You sang, sir, you say? 

Go then," said the ant, "and sing winter away."

Thus ending, he hastily lifted the wicket

and out of the door turned the poor little cricket.

Though this is a fable, the moral is good-

If you live without work, you must live without food.

                                                                                         -Anonymous

The Spider and the Fly

Flattery means praising insincerely, not meaning it, so that the other person will like you.

"A lying tongue hateth those that are afflicted by it; and a flattering mouth worketh ruin." 

— Proverbs 26:28

"A man that flattereth his neighbor, spreadeth a net for his feet."

— Proverbs 29:5

"Will you walk into my parlour?" said the spider to the fly.

Tis the prettiest little parlour that ever you did spy.

The way into my parlour is up a winding stair,

And I've a many curious things to show you when you're there."

"Oh, no, no," said the little Fly, "To ask me is in vain,

For who goes up your winding stair, can ne'er come down again."

"I'm sure you must be weary, dear, with souring up so high.

Will you rest upon my little bed?" said the spider to the fly.

"There are pretty curtains drawn around; the sheets are fine and thin,

And if you like to rest a while, I'll snugly tuck you in!"

"Oh, no, no,"said the little fly, "For I've often heard it said, 

They never, never wake again who sleep upon your bed!"

Said the cunning spider to the fly; "Dear friend, what can I do 

To prove the warm affection I've always felt for you?

I have within my pantry good store of all that's nice;

I'm sure you're very welcome - will you please to take a slice?"

"Oh, no, no,"said the little fly; "Kind sir that cannot be:

I've heard what's in you pantry, and I do not wish to see!"

"Sweet creature!"said the spider, "You're witty and you're wise; 

How handsome are your gauzy wings; how brilliant are your eyes!

I have a little looking glass upon my parlour shelf;

If you'd step in one moment, dear, you shall behold yourself."

I thank you, gentle sir,"she said, "For what you're pleased to say, 

And, bidding you good morning now, I'll call another day."

The spider turned him round about, and went into his den,

For well he knew the silly fly would soon come back again:

So he wove a subtle wed in a little corner sly,

And set his table ready to dine apron the fly;

Then came out to his door again and merrily did sing:

"Come hither, hither, pretty fly, with pearl and silver wing;

Your robes are green and purple; there's a crest upon your head;

Your eyes are like diamond bright, but mine are dull as lead!"

Alas, alas! How very soon this silly little fly,

Hearing his wily, flattering words, came slowly flitting by;

With buzzing wings she hung aloft, than near and nearer grew,

Thinking only of her brilliant eyes and green and purple hue,

Thinking only of her crested head. Poor, foolish thing! At last

Up jumped the cunning spider, and fiercely held her fast;

He dragged her up his winding stair, into the dismal den - 

Within his little parlor - but she ne'er came out again!

And now, dear little children, who may this story read,

To idle, silly, flattering words I pray you ne'er give heed;

Unto an evil counselor close heart and ear and eye,

And take a lesson from this tale of the spider and the fly.

                                                                                  - Mary Howitt

The Butterfly and the Caterpillar

A butterfly, one summer morn,

Sat on a spray of a blossoming thorn

And, as he sipped and drank his share

Of honey from the flowered air,

Below, upon the garden wall,

A caterpillar chanced to crawl.

"Horrors!" The butterfly exclaimed,

"This must be stopped! I am ashamed

That each as I should have to be

In the same world with such as he.

Preserve me from such hideous things!

Disgusting shape! Were are his wings!

Fuzzy and gray! Eater of clay!

Won't someone take the worm away!"

The caterpillar hunched ahead,

But as he munched a leaf, he said,

"Eight days ago, young butterfly,

you wormed about, the same as I.

Within a fortnight from today

Two wings will bear me far away

To brighter blooms and lovelier lures,

With colors that out rival yours.

So, flutter-flit, be not so proud;

Each caterpillar is endowed

With power to make him, by and by,

A blithe and brilliant butterfly.

While you, who scorn the common clay,

You, in your livery so gay,

And all the gaudy moths, and millers,

Are only dressed up caterpillars"

                                                Joseph Lauren

History of Medicine Part II

The Golden Age of Greece ended when the Romans conquered most of the civilized world.
Roman medicine aimed at helping the society as a whole, rather than individuals. They built aqueducts to carry fresh water, arranged for sewers to carry away the waste, and built public baths for personal cleanliness.

The most important physician during the Roman Empire was Galen.

Claudius Galen was a Greek physician who went to Rome and revived the ideas of Hippocrates and other Greek doctors.

Galen believed that, a thorough knowledge of the body is essential to good medical practice; "A physician needs to study the body, as an architect needs to follow a plan."

The Romans had passed harsh laws against dissecting human bodies. A doctor who dared open a body merely to satisfy his curiosity would be severely punished.

Galen did not dare break the laws. He traveled to Alexandria, to study medicine. There, he had the opportunity to study 2 complete human skeletons. After this, he dissected the bodies of animals - pigs, goats, and even apes. He learned much from his study of animals. He diligently described every detail of what he learned.

But not everything he learnt about animals could be used to treat humans.

At the age of 28 Galen returned to his hometown, and became the surgeon to a school of gladiators.

Although the Romans banned the dissection of human bodies, it perfectly fine and encouraged for professional warriors to hack their bodies apart, for the amusement of Colosseum crowds. Once the warrior died, his body was forbidden to be touched except for the preparation for burial.

While repairing the injured gladiators, he learned firsthand about the human body.

A few years later he traveled to Rome where he continued his study. And wrote the first of many books. He also took on his first important case:

Eudemus, a well-known physician, faced a mild paralysis in his right hand. The third and fourth fingers could not be moved. All the best physicians in the city who examined him failed to restore the feeling to his fingers.

Lastly, Eudemus saw Galen.

Galen asked him if he had injured his neck recently. Eudemus, bewildered, said that he had been thrown from a chariot and struck his neck against a stone. The young physician replied that the nerves the neck had been affected in the fall. Then, he treated the nerves in the neck instead of in the fingers.

Eudemus  recovered completely.

His fame soured, but so did the jealousy of other doctors.

Especially when Marcus Aurelius, the Roman Emperor hired him as his personal physician.

According to Galen, the existence of God could not be dismissed once a person saw the marvelous complexity of the human body.

Galen died in his hometown, Pargamum in A.D. 200.

Although Galen died, his ideas didn’t die with him.

His fame continued to grow. He had written about a 125 books, of which 80 still exist.

His books contained a mixture of facts, opinions and errors.

His effect on medicine grew rather than decreased.

His views unfortunately came to be regarded as the final authority in medicine.