The Chaos of the Sun

“We live in an old chaos of the sun, or old dependency of day and night.” This quote from a poem of Wallace Stevens seems to fit my mood, this hot zero summer day. I thought earlier in the day about Wallace Stevens because he has written some delightful Aphorisms, and I adore aphorism and probably have, even before I knew that there was a fancy word for maxim's and proverbs. The English language in filled with Aphorisms which we hear on a daily basis. On a less hot day, I might be willing to debate with you on the possible difference between Aphorisms and Proverbs but today, its almost too hot to do any serious thinking.

Since I can't go for a motorcycle ride, to slightly alleviate the heat and the possible onset of boredom, I had to find something to occupy my mind. When I was a child and I went to my Mother, Louise and told her I was bored, she always answered something to the effect that, “No one is responsible for your boredom but you,” In our house boredom was almost a personal defect, or flaw, like forgetting I before E except after C. I can remember that one way I found to find something to do, was to peruse books, later on the encyclopedia and dictionary's and when I started to become of literary age, in the proper sense of the word, Bartlett's familiar Quotations. Thus over the last fifty or so years, I have spent countless hours during the gray days of November and dreary winters storms, as well as the dog days of summer, reading what other people have thought.

Almost all cultures and languages have an aphoristic tradition and some of my favorite Taoists, Confucian, and Zen Koans certainly fit that mold of aphorisms. On doing a quick Wikipedia search on Aphorisms I found many examples I have not read before, Which I will share with you a Polish writer Stanislaw Jerzy Lec, who wrote a book of aphorism, which I plan to read: The following is a quick down and dirty, not in the lewd sense, rambling of Aphorisms:

The Good or ill of man lies, within his own will. Epictetus
In the long run the truth does not matter. Wallace Stevens
Only that which always existed can be eternal. G Antuan Suarez
A mystic hangs a fig leaf on a eunuch. Sanislaw Jerzy Lee, (The Polish Writer)
You can play a shoestring if you're sincere. John Coltrane
That which does not destroy us makes us stronger. Friedrich Nietzsche
They who give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither
liberty or safety. Ben Franklin
The first ape who became a man thus committed treason against his own kind. Mikhail Turovsky
Wrong Life cannot be lived rightly. Theodor Adorno
It is not uncommon to commiserate with a stranger's misfortune, but it takes a really fine nature to appreciate a friend's success.
Nothing in life is so exhilarating as to be shot at without result. Winston Churchill
Empathy is lost when ever it is most needed. Arturo Mendivil
Believe nothing you hear, and only half of what you see. Mark Twain.
Vanity play lurid tricks with our memory. Joseph Conrad
The fatal futility of Fact. Henry James

Thus my thoughts on this hot July Day!