“Carpe diem.” (This one’s for you, Robin…)

THE PLUCKY LATIN QUOTE: “Carpe diem.” [Traditionally translated as “Seize the day.”]        Horace (Quintas Horatius Flaccus, 65-8 B.C.)        Roman poet        The famous phrase from Book I of his Odes (35 B.C.)        “Carpe diem” is one of the two most famous quotations from Horace’s Odes. The other is: “Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori.” (“It is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country.”) Although the usual translation of “Carpe diem” is “Seize the day,” Latin scholars have pointed out that the more accurate translation is “Pluck the day.”          In fact, the phrase does come at the end of a poem that uses several pastoral and harvest-related metaphors. So, “pluck” is probably closer to the original literal meaning. Below is a longer section of the poem, translated to English:        “Ask not — we cannot know — what end the gods have set for you, for me;             nor attempt the Babylonian reckonings Leuconoë.        How much better to endure whatever comes,              whether Jupiter grants us additional winters or whether this is our last,             which now wears out the Tuscan Sea upon the barrier of the cliffs!        Be wise, strain the wine; and since life is brief, prune back far-reaching hopes!        Even while we speak, envious time has passed:             seize [pluck] the day, putting as little trust as possible in tomorrow!”          Regardless of variations in translation, the meaning of the poem and the famous phrase is clear. Live life to the fullest every day and take advantage of the pleasures and opportunities each day offers. Or, as Warren Zevon put it: “Enjoy every sandwich.”

RIP, ROBIN. YOU WERE INDEED EXTRAORDINARY… “Carpe diem. Seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary.”        Robin Williams (1951-2014), as English teacher John Keating        His advice to his students in the movie Dead Poets Society (1989)        This quote comes at the end of a great sequence in which Keating says to his students:        “‘Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.’ The Latin term for that sentiment is Carpe Diem... Seize the day. Gather ye rosebuds while ye may. Why does the writer use these lines?...Because we are food for worms lads. Because, believe it or not, each and every one of us in this room is one day going to stop breathing, turn cold, and die. Now I would like you to step forward over here and peruse some of the faces from the past. [Old photos of previous students.] You’ve walked past them many times. I don't think you've really looked at them. They’re not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts. Full of hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they’re destined for great things, just like many of you. Their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because you see, gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Carpe. Hear it? Carpe. Carpe Diem. Seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary.”

STEVE ZAHN’S VERSION: “Carpe poon, man.”        Steve Zahn (as the character Wayne)        In the movie Saving Silverman (2001), after seeing a good looking woman in a bar        Thanks to fans of the movie, “Carpe poon” has now made it into the Urban Dictionary

ERMA BOMBECK’S VERSION: “Seize the moment. Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart.”        Erma Bombeck (1927-1996)        American humorist        Quoted as one of “Erma Bombeck’s 10 Rules To Live By” in David Wallechinsky’s Book of Lists

SKYLER’S VERSION: Question on a school test: “Define carpe diem.” Skyler’s answer: “Fish of the day.”         In the Shoe cartoon strip, by Jeff MacNelly, October 8, 2010

TEDDY ROOSEVELT’S VERSION: “Get action. Seize the moment. Man was never intended to become an oyster.”        Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt (1858-1919)        26th President of the United States        Teddy’s advice to his children, quoted in David McCullough’s book Mornings on Horseback (1981)

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