Happy Birthday Jean de la Fontaine. He popularized fables for children, and is more famous than Grimm or Aesop in France. All re-wrote tales from oral tradition, but I’d say de la Fontaine added the most flourish.
To celebrate, here’s some original artwork, entitled the Fox and the Crow from brushslinger Joshua Wait. Check out more of his paintings and drawings here.
And here’s a pretty good translation of Jean de la Fontaine’s ‘La cigalle et le fourmis’ reminding us on this nice Summer day, that Winter will come again, and encouraging us to work now for hard times lie ahead…
THE CICADA AND ANT
The gay cicada, full of song
All the sunny season long,
Was unprovided and brought low,
When the north wind began to blow ;
Had not a scrap of worm or fly,
Hunger and want began to cry ;
Never was creature more perplexed.
She called upon her neighbour ant,
And humbly prayed her just to grant
Some grain till August next ;
“I’ll pay, ” she said, “what ye invest,
Both principal and interest,
Honour of insects –and that’s tender. ”
The ant, however, is no lender ;
That is her least defective side ;
“But, hark ye, pray, Miss Borrower, ” she cried,
“What were ye doing in fine weather ? ”
“ Singing . . . nay,! look not thus askance,
To every comer day and night together. ”
“ Singing ! I’m glad of that ; why now then dance. ”
I’ll guide you to de la Fontaine’s final resting place on MyVoiceMap audio tours of the Père Lachaise cemetery, and tell stories from his life.
See funny pics and text from our picnic together in The Chairfather book.
The passed have never been more alive!
Book a lunch date with the fallen famous NOW!
Or later…
Really, it doesn’t matter. Their agendas are quite open.
#Paris #tourism #travel #VoiceMap #audioguide #eBook #goofball
© 2018 Copyright Joe Start and Joshua Wait. All rights reserved.
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