I Walked a Mile with Pleasure...

I walked a mile with Pleasure;

She chatted all the way;

But left me none the wiser

For all she had to say.

I walked a mile with Sorrow, 

And ne'er a word said she;

But, oh! The things I learned from her, 

When Sorrow walked with me.

                                ~ Robert Browning Hamilton

buy the truth

"buy the truth and sell it not." ~ Proverbs 23:23

Go though, in life's fair morning,

Go, in the bloom of youth,

And buy, for thy adorning,

The precious pearl of truth.

Secure this heavenly treasure,

And bind it in thy heart,

and let not earthly pleasure

E'er cause it to depart.

Go, while the day-star shineth,

Go, while thy heart is light,

Go e'er thy strength declineth

while every sense is bright;

Sell all thou hast and buy it,

'tis worth all earthly things --

Rubies and gold, and diamonds,

scepters and crowns of kings.

                                 ANON

Hope is the Thing With Feathers

'Hope' is the thing with feathers -- 

That perches in the soul -- 

And sings the tune without the words---

And never stops--at all-- 

And sweetest--in the Gale-- is heard-- 

And sore must be the storm-- 

That could abash the little Bird

That kept so many warm--

I've heard it in the chillest land-- 

And on the strangest Sea-- 

Yet, never, in Extremity,

It asked a crumb--of Me. 

~ Emily Dickinson

malaphors

"you can take one man's trash to another man's treasure but you can't make it drink"

fun fact: the blending of idioms or cliches is called a malaphor.
my personal favorite is "we'll burn that bridge when we get to it."

it may seem like a very familiar idiom but it's actually a combination of "I'll cross that bridge when I get to it" and the old adage, "don't burn your bridges."
meaning that you haven't yet arrived at a life obstacle, but you're sure you'll mess it up when you do.

oh, how I absolutely love the English language.

the "cookie thief"

"Do not accuse a man for no reason -- when he has done you no harm." Proverbs 3:30

A woman was waiting at an airport one night,
with several long hours before her flight.
she hunted for a book in the airport shop,
bought a bag of cookies and found a place to drop.
She was engrossed in her book but happened to see,
that the man sitting beside her, as bold as can be,
grabbed a cookie or two from the bag between,
which she tried to ignore to avoid a scene.
She read, munched cookies, and watched the clock,
as the gutsy "cookie thief" diminished her stock.
She was getting more irritated as minutes ticked by,
thinking, "if I wasn't so nice, I would blacken his eye!"
with each cookie she took, he took one too.
When only one was left, she wondered what he'd do.
With a smile on his face and a nervous laugh,
he took the last cookie and broke it in half.
He offered her half, as he ate the other,
she snatched it from him and thought, "oh brother,
this guy has some nerve and he's also rude.
why he didn't even show any gratitude!"
she had never known when she had been so galled,
and sighed with relief when her flight was called.
She gathered her belongings and headed to the gate,
refusing to look back at the "thieving ingrate."
she boarded the plane and sank in her seat,
then sought her book, which was almost complete.
As she reached in her baggage, she gasped with surprise:
there were her cookies in front of her eyes.
"if mine are here," she moaned with despair,
then the others were his and he tried to share!
Too late to apologize, she realized with grief,
that she was the rude one, the ingrate, the thief!


+Valerie Cox

Patience

"Patience is better than wisdom. An ounce of patience is better than a pound of brains. All men praise patience but few enough can practice it; it is a medicine which is good for all diseases, and therefore every old woman recommends it: but it is not every garden that grows the herbs to make it with. When one's flesh and bones are full of aches and pains, it is as natural for us to murmur as it for a horse to shake his head when the flies tease him, or a wheel to rattle when a spoke is loose; but nature should not be the rule with Christians. Or what is their religion worth?



~ Charles Spurgeon

(John Ploughman's Talk)

Courage

       To live courageously demands wholehearted commitment. Some Christians profess to have the courage to die for Christ, but they lack the courage to live daily for him...... Courage is not just the force behind spectacular public acts. It is also the motivation to carry out private deeds hardly noticeable to others.

--BJU Press - Explorations in Literature

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