HODIE: ante diem octavum Idus Iulias (and yes, you can have your own Roman Google Calendar).
VERBUM HODIERNUM: Today's word is TAMEN - read a brief essay about the word at the Verbosum blog. Here's one of the sayings you can find in the essay: Manus digiti conaequales non sunt, omnes tamen usui sunt, "Although the fingers of the hand are not the same as one another, they are all useful."
LATIN AND ENGLISH FABLES: Here are today's fables in Latin AND English from the English Aesop project.
- The Goose and the Golden Eggs = Anser et Ova Aurea.
- The Lion, the Rooster and the Donkey = Leo, Gallus et Asinus.
- The Satyr and the Traveler = Satyrus et Viator.
- The Cat and the Rooster = Catus et Gallus.
- The Fox and the Eagle = Vulpes et Aquila.
There was an old woman who had a goose that laid a golden egg for her each and every day. The woman, however, was very greedy: she concluded that the goose must have a goldmine in his guts and, hoping for even more gain, she killed him on the spot. Then, when she inspected his guts and found only one golden egg in there, she realized she had been deceived by her own foolish hopes and cried, "Woe is me: what guilt I feel for the crime I have committed! Not being content with my moderate profit, I have gone and lost it all."TODAY'S MOTTOES & PROVERBS: Also available as widgets at SchoolhouseWidgets.com.
Anus quaedam anserem alebat, qui illi quotidie ovum aureum excludebat. Anus avarissima, existimans anserem habuisse in visceribus fodinam auream, cupiditate commota, anserem confestim interfecit et, cum viscera perscrutabatur et unicum tantum ovum deprehenderat, spe sublactata inani, exclamabat, "O me infelicem, tantae crudelitatis consciam, quae, non modico contenta lucro, iam omnia perdiderim."
3-Word Mottoes: Today's 3-word motto is Dat cura commodum (English: Being careful bestows profit - this is cura in the positive sense of care, being careful, rather than the negative sense of worry or anxiety).
3-Word Proverbs: Today's 3-word proverb is Qui ignorat ignorabitur (English: He who is ignorant will be ignorant in the future… in other words, the opposite of life-long learning: it's life-long ignorance).
Rhyming Proverbs: Today's proverb with rhyme is: Parcus vescendo, parcissimus esto bibendo (English: Eat sparingly, and drink even more sparingly - good advice, no doubt… but I cannot claim to follow it, alas!).
Vulgate Verse: Today's verse is Funiculus triplex difficile rumpitur (Ecc. 4:12). For a translation, check out the polyglot Bible, in English, Hebrew, Latin and Greek, at the Sacred Texts Archive online.
Elizabethan Proverb Commentary: Here is today's proverb commentary, this time by Conybeare: Aurum Tolosanum habere: A proverbe which had this begynnynge; when Quintus Cepio toke by assaute the citie of Tolosa in Italie. There was founde yn the temples great plentye of golde, which being taken awaye, all they that had any parte thereof died miserablye, whereof happened this proverbe when any man finished his life yn myserye, menne woulde saye, that he had golde of Tolosa.
Today's Poem: Today's poem is from the rhyming sayings collected by Wegeler, with a word list at NoDictionaries.com:
Si currat placidos tibi vis ut vita per annos,English: "If you want for your life to run smoothly over the years, hear much and see much, but take care not to talk much." The idea, of course, is that you can get into a lot of trouble by opening your mouth, but keeping your ears open and eyes open can keep you out of trouble!
Audi, multa vide, multa loquare cave.
For an image today, here is an illustration to go with the story of the goose and the golden eggs. In this version, you can see it is a reckless man, not a woman, who kills the poor goose (source):
