HODIE: ante diem quintum Idus Decembres. You can add a Roman calendar as a widget in your blog or webpage, or display it as a Google Calendar: here's how.
TODAY'S POEM: Here is today's little poem, from the Poetry Widget. This is four-line epigram by Owen, with a word list at NoDictionaries.com:
Praeteriti spes nulla manet, spes sola futuri:English: "There is no hope remaining for something in the past; hope is only for the future: things depart without hope, hopes return without a thing. While grief for the past pains us, and worry for the future, the wild animal seizes what is present, that is what the animal knows." I know this is surely true: my cat has no grief for the past or worry for the future, but he knows what he likes right here and now, and he purrs happily in that realization.
Res abeunt sine spe, || spes redeunt sine re.
Dum nos praeteriti dolor angit, cura futuri,
Bellua quod praesens || est capit, illa sapit.
TODAY'S TWITTER:
Vita Caesaris: You can see my IVLIVS CAESAR feed with a sentence from Plutarch's Life of Caesar each day in Greek, Latin and English. Today's portion continues the description of one of Caesar's valiant and devoted soldiers: Admirante eum Caesare cum comitibus et magno cum gaudio clamoreque obuiam prodeuntibus, ipse tristis admodum et lacrimans ei supplicauit, ut sibi ueniam scuti amissi daret.
Proverbiis Pipilo: You can see my Proverbia feed of Latin proverbs which I "tweet" while I am online each day (in English, too). Here's one from today about the price of knowledge: Scire volunt omnes, studiis incumbere pauci (English: Everyone wants to have knowledge; few want to apply themselves to studying).
TODAY'S MOTTOES & PROVERBS
You can get access to all the proverb of the day scripts (also available as random proverb scripts) at the SchoolhouseWidgets.com website.
2-Word Mottoes: Today's 2-word motto is: Suaviter, fortiter (English: Gently and boldly - a kind of truncated version of "speak softly and carry a big stick").
3-Word Mottoes: Nouns: Today's 3-word verb-less motto is Virtute et opera (English: By worthiness and work - and the Latin opera has all kinds of good connotations here: work, effort, service, care, etc.).
3-Word Mottoes: Verbs: Today's 3-word motto with verb is Sapiens non eget (English: The wise man does not lack anything - a nice motto for the would-be wise among us).
2-Word Proverbs: Today's 2-word proverb is: Liberos erudi (English: Teach your children - with the Latin erudire meaning, literally, to make your children "un-rude," "un-crude").
3-Word Proverbs: Nouns: Today's 3-word verb-less proverb is Tussis pro crepitu (English: A cough to cover a fart... a proverb that always makes me think of the famous saint Hatem the Deaf... who was not deaf at all!).
3-Word Proverbs: Nouns: Today's 3-word proverb with verb is Optima citissime pereunt (English: The best things pass away the most quickly).
Audio Latin Proverb: Today's audio Latin proverb is Publica fama non semper vana (English: Common gossip is not always groundless). To read a brief essay about this proverb and to listen to the audio, visit the Latin Via Proverbs blog.
Latin Animal Proverb: Today's animal proverb is Ne capra contra leonem (English: The nanny-goat should not go against the lion - the Latin does not actually contain a verb, but anything that poses a goat contra leonem, "against a lion," is bound to be bad news for the goat).
Rhyming Proverbs: Today's proverb with rhyme is: Qui bene vult fari, debet bene praemeditari (English: He who wants to speak well should plan his words carefully).
Maxims of Publilius Syrus: Today's proverb from Publilius Syrus is: Ubi peccat aetas maior, male discit minor (English: When the older generation makes mistakes, the younger learns a bad lesson).
Proverbs of Polydorus: Today's proverb from Polydorus is: Singula regio habet suos cantus (English: Each region has its own songs - and what a pleasure that is!).
Vulgate Verse: Today's verse is Omnia probate; quod bonum est, tenete (I Thess. 5:21). For a translation, check out the polyglot Bible, in English, Hebrew, Latin and Greek, at the Sacred Texts Archive online.
Animal Proverb from Erasmus: Today's animal proverb from Erasmus is Vel muscas metuit praetervolitantes (English: He's scared even of flies that flutter by; from Adagia 1.5.66 - notice also the nice iterative verb form, volitare).
Proper Name Proverb from Erasmus: Today's proper name proverb from Erasmus is Diomedea necessitas (English: The necesssity of Diomedes; from Adagia 1.9.4 - Erasmus offers two possibilities for this one: it might allude to a Diomedes of Thrace who forced his guests to sleep with his extremely ugly daughters and then killed them, or else alluding to the incident when, after stealing the Palladium, Diomedes thwarted Odysseus's attempt to kill him, and then bound Odysseus and drove him back to the ships while beating him; in either case, Diomedes is compelling someone by necessity to act against their will).
Elizabethan Proverb Commentary: Here is today's proverb commentary, again by Conybeare: Auricula infima mollior: More soft and pliant then the lower parte of the eare, a proverbe spoken of a mylde and gentle person, nothinge stubburne or frowarde (and, you have to admit, the earlobe is a remarkably soft little part of the body!).
Greek Proverb of the Day: Today's proverb is Ὀυ νυκτὶ πλοῆς (English: You are sailing not by night... which is to say, you do not have the stars to guide you and may for that reason lose your way).
TODAY'S FABLES:
Ictibus Felicibus: Today's fable with macrons and accent marks is Graculus et Pavo, the story of the jackdaw in peacock's feathers.
Gaudium Mundo: Today's Latin holiday songs from the Gaudium Mundo blog are: Regis Olim Urbe David, a Latin version of "Once in Royal David's City," along with In natali Domini and also Cari pastores, a Latin version of the Polish carol, "Pasterze mili."
For those of you viewing this at the blog, here is a YouTube performance of In natali Domini:
