Touchstone On A Bus
Last night I rode with Touchstone on a bus
From Ludgate Hill to World's End. It was he!
Despite the broadcloth and the bowler hat,
I knew him, Touchstone, the wild flower of folly,
The whetstone of his age, the scourge of kings,
The madcap morning star of elfin-land,
Who used to wrap his legs around his neck
For warmth on winter nights. He had slipped back,
To see what men were doing in a world
That should be wiser. He had watched a play,
Read several books, heard men discourse of art
And life; and he sat bubbling like a spring
In Arden. Never did blackbird, drenched with may,
Chuckle as Touchstone chuckled on that ride.
_Lord, what a world! Lord, what a mad, mad world!_
Then, to the jolt and jingle of the engine,
He burst into this bunch of madcap rhymes:--
poem by Alfred Noyes
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Related quotes
Touchstone
Love built our house on solid ground
Such rock as will not yield
And I bear an enduring stone with me
From uncertainty as my shield
One touch can bring accord with you
Evoking feelings ever fond
I know you wear a touchstone too
As emblem of our bond
But I have found the true touchstone
Not born of this mortal plane
Against earth’s treasures ever known
It transcends all such as gain
If not from your sweet lips they ring
Then no words of love be true
Save observed in your eyes shining
Love’s light but darkness without you
There is no logic, no poem, no art
If not with you to share
If not composed within your heart
No music fills the air
Love the only touchstone
Or there be none at all
If love lives not within our home
There lives no love at all.
poem by Mary Havran
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Sonnet LX: Define My Weal
Define my weal, and tell the joys of Heav'n;
Express my woes, and show the pains of Hell;
Declare what fate unlucky stars have giv'n,
And ask a world upon my life to dwell;
Make known the faith that Fortune could not move;
Compare myu worth with others' base desert;
Let virtue be the touchstone of my love,
So may the heav'ns read wonders in my heart;
Behold the clouds which have eclips'd my sun,
And view the crosses which my course do let;
Tell me if ever since the world begun
So fair a rising had so foul a set,
And see if Time (if he would strive to prove)
Can show a second to so pure a love.
poem by Michael Drayton
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The Touchstone
A man there came, whence none could tell,
Bearing a Touchstone in his hand;
And tested all things in the land
By its unerring spell.
Quick birth of transmutation smote
The fair to foul, the foul to fair;
Purple nor ermine did he spare,
Nor scorn the dusty coat.
Of heirloom jewels, prized so much,
Were many changed to chips and clods,
And even statues of the Gods
Crumbled beneath its touch.
Then angrily the people cried,
'The loss outweighs the profit far;
Our goods suffice us as they are
We will not have then tried.'
And since they could not so prevail
To check this unrelenting guest,
They seized him, saying - 'Let him test
How real it is, our jail! '
But, though they slew him with the sword,
And in a fire his Touchstone burn'd,
Its doings could not be o'erturned,
Its undoings restored.
And when to stop all future harm,
They strew'd its ashes on the breeze;
They little guess'd each grain of these
Convey'd the perfect charm.
North, south, in rings and amulets,
Throughout the crowded world 'tis borne;
Which, as a fashion long outworn,
In ancient mind forgets.
poem by William Allingham
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A renewed commitment to the freedom and opportunity of our people is the touchstone of our time. In this new century, where tests are many and challenges change with the shifting of the wind, we must hold fast to the principles that have made our nation the envy of the world.
quote by Bill Owens
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Within this Earthen Vessel
WITHIN this earthen vessel are bowers and groves,
and within it is the Creator:
Within this vessel are the seven oceans
and the unnumbered stars.
The touchstone and the jewel-appraiser are within;
and within this vessel the Eternal soundeth,
and the spring wells up.
Kabîr says:
'Listen to me, my Friend!
My beloved Lord is within.'
Weight Of The World
I used to carry the weight of the world
On my back
I never trusted my friends or my girl
Can you imagine that
I used to shuffle my feet
When I walked I hung my head down low
Kept to myself all my private thoughts
But when I met you girl.
I dropped the weight of the world
Weight of the world
I dropped the weight of the world
Weight of the world.
I knew some people used to dance all night
But not me
I never knew if it was wrong or right
To be so free
I used to close my eyes
And try to hide from the light of love
Spent all my time with the darkness inside
But when I met you girl.
I dropped the weight of the world
Weight of the world
I dropped the weight of the world
Weight of the world.
I was alone for all of my life
I was alone for all of my life
I was alone for all of my life
I was alone for all of my life
Until you came my way
I dropped the weight of the world
Weight of the world
I dropped the weight of the world
Weight of the world.
song performed by by Neil Young
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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World To Me
Bars of gold, shiny diamonds
All the pearls in the deep blue sea
They could never equal
What you mean to me
And all the rings, on all the fingers
Of all the kings and queens
They wont reveal, how I feel
Cause you are there when I need you
And you are there in the morning when the sun comes up
You are there in the evening
You are there when I mess up
Youll be there in the winter time
Youll be there and be tru
From now on Ill be there for you
Cause you -- you mean the world to me
You mean the world to me
And I want you and all the world to see
You mean the world to me
All the cold in alaska, and all the music down in tennessee
All the tea in china, cant take you from em
The highest mountains the greenest valleys
All the stars above, cant replace
My favorite face
Cause you were there in the hard times
You were there when I was ready to give up
You were there when there was no one else
And you were there when I messed up
Youll be there in the long run
Youll be there and be true
From now on Ill be there for you
Cause you, you mean the world to me
You mean the world to me
And I want you and all the world to see
You mean the world
You mean the world
song performed by by Huey Lewis And The News
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The ultimate touchstone of constitutionality is the Constitution itself and not what we have said about it.
quote by Felix Frankfurter
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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My Wild Wild World
My wild wild world
Is very different from your world
Because in my wild wild world
You find lots of action
Day and night
Even though my wil wild world
Is a world that never sleeps
But your world is a quiet one
Made for seniors just like you
poem by Aldo Kraas
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The Birth Of Christ
Well they traveled over hills and mountains
On a cold December night just like this
For they knew what was going to happen
Mary would give birth to the prince of peace
Our Lord
From the manjor what they saw in the distance
Was a misty silloutte of three kings
Bringing all the most prescious jewels to our savior
Knowing he would soon be called the king of kings
Our Lord
[Chorus:]
On Christmas day
They saw a star in the east and followed it
On Christmas day
That marked the birth place of our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ
All free from sin
Here to give us a chance at everlasting life again
So the world
So cold you better let him in
To your heart
From the sight of the blessed child was full of beauty
As they looked upon the one who would save our world
To their knees they dropped and started to worship
Giving thanks to God above for the prince of peace
Our Lord
No one knew back then that on that evening
That the miracle of miracles came true
That a God above would come down from heaven
In the form of a child
That would set us free
Our Lord
song performed by by Boyz II Men
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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For every SF reader of that period, Robert A. Heinlein was also a touchstone.
quote by Walter Jon Williams
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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My Wild Love
My wild love went ridin
She rode all the day
She wrote to the devil
And asked him to pay
The devil was wiser
Its time to repent
He asked her to give back
The money she spent
My wild love went ridin
She rode to the sea
She gathered together
Some shells for her head
She rode and she rode on
She rode for a while
Then stopped for an evenin
And lay her head down
She rode on to christmas
She rode to the farm
She rode to japan
And re-entered a town
By this time the weather
Had changed one degree
She asked for the people
To let her go free
My wild love is crazy
She screams like a bird
She moans like a cat
When she wants to be heard
My wild love went ridin
She rode for an hour
She stopped and she rested
And then she rode on
Ride, cmon
song performed by by Doors
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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We innovate by starting with the customer and working backwards. That becomes the touchstone for how we invent.
quote by Jeff Bezos
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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Shine For You
Look across the world
And let us shine for you, Lord
The whole world is yours
And I want to live for you
One thing I know
Is that you've changed my life
I give you my all
All you are is good
Give you my heart
God it's only you I seek
Give you my praise
'Cause I believe in you
Look across the world
And let us shine for you, Lord
The whole world is yours
And I want to live for you, O God
All that I know
Is that you've changed my life
I give you my all
And all you are is good
Carry the lost
Make my prayer in this life real
Carry my cross
Hold on 'til I see you
Look across the world
And let us shine for you, Lord
The whole world is yours
And I want to live for you, O God
And I want to live
I want to love you more
I want to be used
Father in all of the world
May your word be heard
May it stay on my lips
Live what I speak
Until your kingdom come
Look across the world
And let us shine for you
And let us shine for you
Look across the world
And let us shine for you, Lord
The whole world is yours
And I want to live for you
Look across the world
And let us shine for you, Lord
The whole world is yours
And I want to live for you
And I want to live for you
And I want to live for you
song performed by by Hillsong
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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On the touchstone of misfortune a man discovers the strength of understanding and of spirit in kinsmen, wife, servants, and himself.
Seven-Sided Poem by C. Drummond translated by Souza
When I was born, a crooked angel,
the kind who live in shadows,
said: Go, Carlos! Be gauche in life.
The houses spy the men
chasing after women.
Perhaps if the afternoon were blue
there wouldn’t be so many desires.
The tram passes by full of legs:
white black yellow legs.
Why so many legs, God, my heart asks.
But my eyes
never ask a thing.
The man behind the mustache
is serious, simple, and strong.
Almost never talks.
Has a few, close friends,
that man behind the glasses and the mustache.
Lord, why did you abandon me
if you knew I wasn’t God?
if you knew I was weak.
World world vast globe
if my name were Job
it would be a rhyme, not a solution.
World world vast globe
vaster still is my heart.
I ought not tell you,
but this moon
but this cognac
gives us heartache like the devil.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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Colossal Youth
If you think the world is
A machine with one cog
And that cog is you,
Or the things that you do
Then you are not in this world
The world is not you
If you think the world
Is a balloon in your head
When it goes bang only
You will be dead
cos you are not in this world
The world is not you
If you think the world lies
At the top of your legs
And you only live when you are in bed
Then you are not in this world
The world is your head
If you think the world is
A clutter of existence
Falling through the air
With minimal resistance
You could be right, how would I know?
Colossal youth is showing the way to go
song performed by by Young Marble Giants
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Brave New World
Dying swans twisted wings, beauty not needed here
Lost my love, lost my life, in this garden of fear
I have seen many things, in a lifetime alone
Mother love is no more, bring this savage back home
Wilderness house of pain, makes no sense of it all
Close this mind dull this brain, messiah before his fall
What you see is not real, those who know will not tell
All is lost sold your souls to this brave new world
A brave new world, in a brave new world
A brave new world, in a brave new world
In a brave new world, a brave new world
In a brave new world, a brave new world
Dragon kings dying queens, where is salvation now
Lost my life lost my dreams, rip the bones from my flesh
Silent screams laughing here, dying to tell you the truth
You are planned and you are damned in this brave new world
A brave new world, in a brave new world
A brave new world, in a brave new world
In a brave new world, a brave new world
In a brave new world, a brave new world
A brave new world, in a brave new world
A brave new world, in a brave new world
In a brave new world, a brave new world
In a brave new world, a brave new world
Dying swans twisted wings, bring this savage back home
song performed by by Iron Maiden
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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