per·i·pa·tet·ic
ˌperēpəˈtedik/
adjective
  1. 1.
    traveling from place to place, especially working or based in various places for relatively short periods.
    "the peripatetic nature of military life"
    synonyms:nomadic, itinerant, traveling, wandering, roving, roaming, migrant,migratory, unsettled
    "I could never get used to her peripatetic lifestyle"
  2. 2.
    Aristotelian.
noun
  1. 1.
    a person who travels from place to place.
  2. 2.
    an Aristotelian philosopher.

Friday, February 26, 2010

'Beggar to Beggar Cried': After Thirty Years of Give and Take? MOTS!


'Time to put off the world and go somewhere
And find my health again in the sea air,'
Beggar to beggar cried, being frenzy-struck,
'And make my soul before my pate is bare...'




Thirty years have come and gone, and Secret Aging Man said he's ready to try for another thirty, as long as I am. Okay, but promise me we will always take long walks together. This one happened earlier this week in Gulf Breeze at Shoreline Park South.


'And get a comfortable wife and house
To rid me of the devil in my shoes,'
Beggar to beggar cried, being frenzy-struck,
'And the worse devil that is between my thighs.'

Daughter went along for the walk and spotted this mushroom-and-child before I did. I guess I was too engrossed in the man by my side to notice.
















'And though I'd marry with a comely lass,
She need not be too comely--let it pass,'
Beggar to beggar cried, being frenzy-struck,
'But there's a devil in a looking-glass.'



'Nor should she be too rich, because the rich
Are driven by wealth as beggars by the itch,'
Beggar to beggar cried, being frenzy-struck,
'And cannot have a humorous happy speech.'

Buildings by the score have sprung up along Pensacola Beach in the last several years and continue to do so, as you can see by the presence of that massive crane. More and more high-rise behemoths now obscure whatever view of the Gulf the residents of Gulf Breeze might have had in years past--and maybe even some of that famous Breeze. Their solid, dearly-paid-for presence replaces those shifting sand dunes that once formed a barrier between the Gulf and the Sound. Some people might argue that it's better to rely on the protection of these new barriers along the horizon that are fixed in place, anchored to the bedrock by beams of steel and pillars of concrete. What do you think?


'And there I'll grow respected at my ease,
And hear amid the garden's nightly peace,'
Beggar to beggar cried, being frenzy-struck,
'The wind-blown clamour of the barnacle-geese.'

A poem, this one by W. B. Yeats, shared with you by two beggars. (And I do mean beggars. I put myself at the mercy of the copyright holder by sharing it here on the blog. It's not in the public domain yet so I hope I'm not in trouble here. I do tend to invite it, though. Can we say the poem has been shared for scholarly purposes?) I don't pretend to understand it fully, anymore than I understand how a shifting-sand-dune, give-and-take marriage can last for thirty years in this day and age. All I know is that I want More of the Same.

14 comments:

  1. Happy anniversary to you both!!! Sounds like another 30 years are in order then!!! :) Go for it!!!
    xoxo- Julie

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  2. I love Yeats. The poem was captivating, and so was your story. Congratulations!

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  3. I'd like more of the same too, only a little slower this time.

    Y'all don't look a day over 50! ;~P

    ("Spring" will arrive early in your inbox.)

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  4. A belated Happy Anniversary to you and SAM! Wishing you another 30 years...my Mom and Dad are going on 62, so it's definitely possible these days.

    P.S., I won't tell the copyright police about the Yeats poem:)

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  5. Happy Anniversay to both of you!!
    I sometimes read Yeats. To tell you the truth, his words are pretty difficult for me. And I was truly impressed with what he wrote in the introduction of "Fairy and Folk tales of the Irish Peasantry"! I'm curious about the fantastic mushroom!! Very unique! Thank you for sharing!

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  6. Thank you, Julie. We will try our best to live long enough to celebrate the 60th. I hope I didn't upset you with my comments about the veggies grown in tires. The worrying I do will probably do me in faster than chemicals would.

    CM, I'm glad to meet another Yeats fancier. It seems there aren't too many these days, which is the main reason I included the entire poem instead of just a line or two. I hope he--well, his heir--gains from more interest in his work. Thanks for the good wishes!

    TC, you know that's an endearing comment, right? Thanks, I guess. I'm still 49, okay? I took a peek at Spring in my inbox, and me likey very much! Well done, Mr. Poet-don't-I-know-it! When and where will it be available for purchase?

    Thanks, Rose! I knew I could count on your discretion. Congrats to your mom and dad. What's their secret?

    Sapphire, thank you. Yeats does challenge the reader. He's not for the faint of heart and doesn't gloss over things or depict life in pretty colors. I haven't read that introduction. I'll check into it. Thanks for letting me know. As for the mushroom, I have no idea what kind it is. I was hoping someone out there might know and tell us.

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  7. I am a great Yeats fan. I love the poem. I also enjoyed your story and photo's. Congratulations and Happy Anniversary.

    It is a shame about the all the building. I would be quite devastated if it interfered with my breeze and view of the sea.

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  8. Oh I love your blog and I love Yeats too. Happy Anniversary too ♥ I can see I am going to have to come back over when I have LOTS of time and read your whole blog, just like a fine book.
    We used to live in Pensacola for two years and also lived in Tallahasssee for three weeks (hah, don't ask)
    We loved Gulf Breeze and also loved the Irish Restaurant that was in downtown Pensacola named McGruires. We loved going there on Saturday nights (back when we were younger) and listed to the live Irish bands. They had great brewed beer lol
    That's such a shame about the tall buildings along the coast ! Make them stop. I would think it would be against the law, and it should be, but people care more about money than they do nature.
    My hubby (so many years ago)went to college in Carbondale, IL and used to go rock climbing somewhere along there. You would probably know the place. (or i could just easily ask him lol, but he's at work right now, and i'm too busy at the computer to go and find my cell phone lol)
    Have a great day!

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  9. of course, please ignore my spelling errors !
    McGuires & Tallahassee...............
    and any others I didn't catch

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  10. Ann, if the late great Yeats only knew how many fans he has even now! I'm with you on the overpopulation at the beach. It's a barrier island, for goodness sake. People should never have been allowed to build homes and businesses there. We're all paying the price for those fancy places through higher insurance rates when there's hurricane damage on the beach. And who knows how many critters have lost their habitat over the years? Anyway, thanks for adding your thoughts and good wishes!

    Sandy, your husband must have gone climbing (rappelling?) at Giant City State Park. It's a popular place with the students and former students, including us. Would you believe we went to dinner at McGuire's the evening of our anniversary? We have never had a bad meal there, and the atmosphere is wonderful. I'm so glad I found your comment at The Write Gardener and then looked up your site. Thanks for stopping by and leaving such a wonderful comment!

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  11. A very Happy Anniversary to you both and taking a walk sounds like a lovely way to celebrate. You know I would always rather have Mother Nature make the barriers as those condos don't allow native critters to live in them...but heck, ,my former school is a stip mall now... sigh....

    ps..did you change your comment settings? The embedded blogger one always freezes firefox for some reason and I have to close and use IE. It has to be with the script for the embedded vrs pop-up..... Michelle

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  12. You two are amazing! 30 years and still going strong and all you ask for is long walks? Lucky SAM! And you!

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  13. Gee, if all it takes to make it to 30 years is long walks, you should some how copyright them :-) Maybe you can turn your long walks into money, lol... Wonderful way to enjoy life together and yes, another 30 is now in the makings! Congratulations to you both for getting through the tough times together as they are the ice breakers for most. You are in inspiration for your family to follow…

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  14. Thanks, Michelle. You know, if some of those condos for sale out on the beach don't sell pretty soon, the critters they displaced might make a comeback if they can find a nook or cranny to crawl into. Some of them were built with dreams of getting rich instead of real money, and we know how quickly dreams can evaporate. Sorry about the comment switch. The embedded one seems to work better for most people because you can scroll up and look at something again without losing your comment. The pop-up comment box doesn't allow that as you know. Blogger has made many improvements over the last year or so since I started blogging, but there's always room for more.

    Tina, you know I remind him how lucky he is all the time! Thank you!

    Skeeter, thanks! Yeah, copyrighting the walks would probably pay better than my writing has so far. But then if I were paid to take them maybe they wouldn't be so enjoyable anymore. I've begun to think the same way about writing. As for being an inspiration, I'm not so sure, but I know that we both had great role models in our parents. They weren't perfect but showed us that they loved each other in spite of and more than all of that imperfection.

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