From somewhere in my past classical education - of which I'm sure Boris Godunov, tsar of London, would have approved. Is it true he wants all the primary school children of the capital learning Latin? - I recall a Greek apophthegm, 'Know yourself' (or then it was 'Know thyself'). Self-knowledge was highly valued. So I suppose I should be grateful that I don't know when my book is coming out (some websites say 1st October, some 28th) and that its subtitle continues to be wrong on all the websites and that Amazon doesn't even have a PICTURE of it - still! I found myself becoming vaguely irritated. And then I had a moment of self-realisation. I am still a control freak. I like things to happen my way. Chill out, old man! Life's not like that. So I've been reminded that I'm still a work in progress.
I'm also humbled to learn that 'My Donkeybody' is in the top 10 hot future releases on Amazon's Religion and Spirituality list. I'm grateful for the trust. I hope when it's read that you feel it's justified. Tomorrow I meet one of the kind people who added their weight to the book with a generous commendation, the dynamic bishop of Reading, Stephen Cottrell. How he manages to combine his more than full-time job with writing books I don't know; but they're a good read.
Funnily enough, this apophthegem re-entered common parlance a couple of summers ago when Big Brother contestant and self-styled 'ghetto princess', Aisleyne, warned fellow house-mate, Nikki Grahame, 'you'd better know yourself... little girl'.
ReplyDeleteBut I bet she didn't know it WAS an apophthegm. However it all goes to show that the ancient Greeks didn't have a monopoly of wisdom, and that there's hope for the world without a classical education.
ReplyDeleteI don't think many of us knew it was an apopphlegm, sounds like a nasty form of the common cold.
ReplyDeleteWell, now, young man, you know. Assuming you've looked in a dictionary. What was you degree, by the way?
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