Is maith an scáthán súil charad.
Apr. 22nd, 2003 12:40 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
capri0mniOr, in English (instead of Irish Gaelic): The eye of a friend is a good mirror.
I found that proverb here, going on 2 years ago, now, and was reminded of it today by this thread in the Mudcat Cafe Discussion forum, which started out as a discussion of Shakespeare's 22nd sonnet ...
My glass shall not persuade me I am old,
So long as youth and thou are of one date;
But when in thee time's furrows I behold,
Then look I death my days should expiate.
For all that beauty that doth cover thee
Is but the seemly raiment of my heart,
Which in thy breast doth live, as thine in me:
How can I then be elder than thou art?
O, therefore, love, be of thyself so wary
As I, not for myself, but for thee will;
Bearing thy heart, which I will keep so chary
As tender nurse her babe from faring ill.
Presume not on thy heart when mine is slain;
Thou gavest me thine, not to give back again.
And has ended up being a discussion of the pains and joys of growing old in love, really good love sonnets, sonnets in general, and putting sonnets to music... And it will likely branch out into other ideas, as well...
But for me, my mind just lashed onto the idea that the mirror of glass and silver is not as persuasive as the face (eyes) of a loved one. And it reminded me of the proverb above.
When we rely only on the thing that is a mirror, we look into the mirror ourselves. Our vanities magnify our good qualities (sometimes), but more often, our fears magnify our flaws. A true friend sees our flaws as well as our strengths, but unlike a dead mirror sees both with forgiveness -- and kindness.
I think maybe I will try to write a song about that. There are lots of "silly love songs" out there... not nearly as many "good friendship songs."
I found that proverb here, going on 2 years ago, now, and was reminded of it today by this thread in the Mudcat Cafe Discussion forum, which started out as a discussion of Shakespeare's 22nd sonnet ...
My glass shall not persuade me I am old,
So long as youth and thou are of one date;
But when in thee time's furrows I behold,
Then look I death my days should expiate.
For all that beauty that doth cover thee
Is but the seemly raiment of my heart,
Which in thy breast doth live, as thine in me:
How can I then be elder than thou art?
O, therefore, love, be of thyself so wary
As I, not for myself, but for thee will;
Bearing thy heart, which I will keep so chary
As tender nurse her babe from faring ill.
Presume not on thy heart when mine is slain;
Thou gavest me thine, not to give back again.
And has ended up being a discussion of the pains and joys of growing old in love, really good love sonnets, sonnets in general, and putting sonnets to music... And it will likely branch out into other ideas, as well...
But for me, my mind just lashed onto the idea that the mirror of glass and silver is not as persuasive as the face (eyes) of a loved one. And it reminded me of the proverb above.
When we rely only on the thing that is a mirror, we look into the mirror ourselves. Our vanities magnify our good qualities (sometimes), but more often, our fears magnify our flaws. A true friend sees our flaws as well as our strengths, but unlike a dead mirror sees both with forgiveness -- and kindness.
I think maybe I will try to write a song about that. There are lots of "silly love songs" out there... not nearly as many "good friendship songs."
