whether you live always in sadness Why do the tall pine and white poplar Bring wines and perfumes and the too-brief You'll leave your boughten lands and your house you're rich and of ancient lineage We are all gathered to the same place: HORACE* *(Quintus Horatius Flaccus, Venusia, December 8, 65 BC – Rome, November 27, 8 BC, known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus.)Keep A Tranquil Mind
Remember in difficult times to
keep a tranquil mind, and in good times
to keep from becoming overjoyed,
my Dellius who is yet to die,
or on festal days in far-off field
reclining you take delight in a
famed vintage of Falernian wine.
love to unite their foliage in
inviting shade? Why does the rushing
water press on through its winding banks?
flower that blooms on the lovely rose
while good fortune and our youth allow,
and the dark threads of the three Sisters.
in the country, washed by the Tiber —
you'll leave them, and some heir will acquire
the wealth you piled high. And whether
or you're poor and sleep beneath the stars,
in the end it makes no difference: for
pitiless Orcus will have your soul.
the lot of all is turned in the urn
of Fate, who will come forth and place us
in the skiff, for eternal exile.
