{"id":1777,"date":"2010-02-09T21:25:20","date_gmt":"2010-02-10T02:25:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/iomaire.com\/?p=1777"},"modified":"2010-12-05T21:49:20","modified_gmt":"2010-12-06T02:49:20","slug":"desiderata","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/2010\/02\/09\/desiderata\/","title":{"rendered":"Desiderata"},"content":{"rendered":"

I recently had occasion to painfully recall the line, “Especially, do not feign affection”, from the well-known poem Desiderata<\/em>, which was very popular in the late 1960s and which achieved even more popularity when the talk-show host, Les Crane, recorded it in 1971. I couldn’t find a video of it that I liked enough to post, so if you would like to listen to Les Crane’s recording<\/a> of it, follow the link. When I was in college in the late 1960s, the origins of the poem, allegedly written in 1692, puzzled everyone. Thank goodness for the Internet! It was written by Max Ehrmann<\/a> in 1927.<\/p>\n

Update 12\/05\/2010: Reader Joe submitted the following link<\/a> for a very nice video of Desiderata<\/em>. Thanks, Joe!<\/p>\n

Desiderata<\/h4>\n

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
\nand remember what peace there may be in silence.
\nAs far as possible without surrender
\nbe on good terms with all persons.
\nSpeak your truth quietly and clearly;
\nand listen to others,
\neven the dull and the ignorant;
\nthey too have their story.<\/p>\n

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
\nthey are vexations to the spirit.
\nIf you compare yourself with others,
\nyou may become vain and bitter;
\nfor always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
\nEnjoy your achievements as well as your plans.<\/p>\n

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
\nit is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
\nExercise caution in your business affairs;
\nfor the world is full of trickery.
\nBut let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
\nmany persons strive for high ideals;
\nand everywhere life is full of heroism.<\/p>\n

Be yourself.
\nEspecially, do not feign affection.
\nNeither be cynical about love;
\nfor in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
\nit is as perennial as the grass.<\/p>\n

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
\ngracefully surrendering the things of youth.
\nNurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
\nBut do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
\nMany fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
\nBeyond a wholesome discipline,
\nbe gentle with yourself.<\/p>\n

You are a child of the universe,
\nno less than the trees and the stars;
\nyou have a right to be here.
\nAnd whether or not it is clear to you,
\nno doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.<\/p>\n

Therefore be at peace with God,
\nwhatever you conceive Him to be,
\nand whatever your labors and aspirations,
\nin the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.<\/p>\n

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
\nit is still a beautiful world.
\nBe careful.
\nStrive to be happy.<\/p>\n

Max Ehrmann, Desiderata<\/em>, Copyright 1952.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I recently had occasion to painfully recall the line, “Especially, do not feign affection”, from the well-known poem Desiderata, which was very popular in the late 1960s and which achieved even more popularity when the talk-show host, Les Crane, recorded …<\/span> Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[117],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1777"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1777"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1777\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2133,"href":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1777\/revisions\/2133"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1777"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1777"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iomaire.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1777"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}