Complete Essays of Montaigne

by Michel Eyquem Montaigne

Folks this is how 5GW will happen! Beware the facile meme, the urge to do as it commands!

Ok now on to seriousness. The 123 Meme works as follows:

1. Pick up the nearest book ( of at least 123 pages).
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people.

However, the meme stops here. At least in this branch, since I won’t be tagging others. (I am channeling the character in Dead Poets Society who doesn’t march with all the others.) But I can do 1-4.

Book: The Complete Essays of Montaigne.

And for several months now, it’s the only book I’ve had handy, the only book I read. I must have read everything in it by now….but only piecemeal. I pick it up and open to a random page, read a bit — sometimes read a whole essay (for the umpteenth time), sometimes read only a few paragraphs. And in this way I’ve gone front-to-back and back-to-front over it several times.

Here are the three sentences requested by Shane Deichman:

I would have portraits there of Joy and Gladness, and Flora and the Graces, as the philosopher Speusippus had in his school. Where their profit is, let their frolic be also. Healthy foods should be sweetened for the child, and harmful ones dipped in gall.