Skip to main content

Somethings Never Change

I came across this excerpt while reading Count Belisarius by Robert Graves -

" It is a well known that almost everyone in the world is discontented with his trade or profession. The farmer would like to be an emperor, the Emperor would like to plant cabbages; the lean captain of a trading vessel envies the big paunched wine shop proprietor - who returns the envy dissatisfied with his stay-at-home life."

That was during the 6th century Roman Empire. It holds true even today.  I suppose some things never change.

Comments

agnivarsha said…
Dreaming day and night
to be an engineer in every right
Oh lord,I became the one now
Earning name,fame and money
I see no joy nor excitement now
As I saw a painter with a glow
I want to become one like him
So I start to paint like him,
Oh lord,I became the one now,
earning name,fame and money,
The colors have faded and so is the creative mind
As i was not content with who I am
I saw a man on the street,
No place to stay,no money to pay,
Cheerful and laughing
No pain, no discontentment
I asked him,how you live this life
Peaceful in my mind
nothing to loose nothing to gain,
He said with a smiling face
Oh Lord,I want to be like him.
I tried to scribble something,pardon me if i typed wrongly as i am not that good at grammar.

Please leave your comment on the above at venu.kvg@gmail.com

A thought,

Today I saw a man,visually challenged,standing near a walkby(I dont know for how long)selling tissue paper packets.There are many people passing by that man and I can definetly say hardly one,two people will buy from him,just to give him money.How much he can earn that day.I remember once while i was walking through the same path,I saw a boy with him.Today when I saw him again in the same place,I couldnt control my tears.How he is surviving in this ever expensive place.I wonder what he would want to be!
28 Mar 2008, 22:54:00
Anonymous said…
..and certain fare-collection-engineers would like to retire to write books and grow geraniums in the countryside :)

i think the reason why everyone hates their profession is that we all want money, glory, comfort and luxuries, doing absolutely no work at all :p it's the holy grail :)
31 Mar 2008, 11:11:00
Eastertide said…
Agnivarsha/Venu/invincible indian,

As you see, i dont reply to comments. I am replying to yours asking you to move your writings to your own blog. Please do not email me/or try to contact me, as I am not interested in making new friendships. you should put your good writings in your very own blog! Best of luck.
5 Apr 2008, 08:49:00
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Men Never Listen When You Say "I need to talk"

Men are so tiresome. They never pay attention when you say "I need to talk". I mean just the other day, I had something of great importance to discuss with Dad. So, I sat down next to him on the couch while he was watching TV, Me : "Dad, I need your honest feedback. Are you listening? Dad [with full attention]: "Yeah what is it?" Me : "Well this thought has been troubling me for a bit, for a while actually. You know, like I am so totally in a dilemma. You could actually say its a sorta like a conundrum, but then its kinda bizarre. But whatever. I mean, I have been seriously thinking that I shouldn't do it. But then there are various reasons why I haven't totally written it off yet……[noticing that Dad's eyes were wavering back to the TV, so poking him] Dad are you listening ? Dad [guiltily]: Yeah. Something is bothering you. Me: Yeah so I was wondering if I should blah…blah…blah…yada...yada...yada. So you tell me, should I get my...
5 comments
Read more

Not-so Unconditional Faith

I was talking to Jayesh about how faith in God should be independent of the joys and misery God puts us through, that Faith should not be conditional. I scorned people who did otherwise. But after the conversation, I got off my judgmental horse and realised that I was talking pure idealism that even I (gasp!) have not matched up to. Most human relationships are conditional. We love because we are loved. We help because we are comfortable.  We feed because we are well fed.  I am not making sense am I?  Oh dear, let me try and explain. Did you ever feed someone - a beggar, your child, mother, whoever - when you were going hungry? Do you love your family/partner/dog without expecting something in return? Did you ever donate your (not your dad's, mom's, ancestral) money to a cause you believed in when money was hard to come by? Perhaps not all of us have been in such situations, so lets just simply ask, have you been unconditional? That one glorious shining moment w...
6 comments
Read more