It was true I should look a fool before everyone;
why not look a fool before everyone?Charles Williams, “Palomides Before his Christening” (1944)Il était vrai que je ferais figure de con devant tout le monde.
Pourquoi ne pas faire figure de con devant tout le monde?
Palomides is a character invented by the author (one of the authors…) of the 13th-century Tristan en prose (1230s-40s) and from there taken over into Malory’s le Morte d’Arthur. He is the worthy, but hapless, rival of Tristan for the love of Iseult and the occasional opponent, occasional companion of Lancelot. In the poem, he is contemplating getting baptized (he is a Saracen), even though he has failed in the quest he vowed he would accomplish beforehand.
The lines are appropriate for anyone who, like me, hates looking like a fool.
I was teaching a young woman accordion. She was already a pretty good accordionist, but was worried about improvising, because she thought she would look silly.
I said, “Be happy to look silly.”
She never called me again!
Mike
I reckon she was expecting you to say: “Oh, no, you won’t look silly at all!”
Please keep these “centers of being,” I mean works of art, coming. I’m not seeing anything like this anywhere else!